Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 4

Devanagari script

अष्टषष्टिषु गोत्राणां नायकत्वे व्यवस्थितः । तव वाक्येन सर्वाणि गोत्राणि द्विजसत्तम

Transliteration

aṣṭaṣaṣṭiṣu gotrāṇāṃ nāyakatve vyavasthitaḥ | tava vākyena sarvāṇi gotrāṇi dvijasattama

Translation

Được an lập làm người lãnh đạo của sáu mươi tám dòng gotra, nhờ lời của ngài mà mọi gotra—hỡi bậc tối thượng trong hàng nhị sinh—sẽ được dẫn dắt.

Word by Word

• aṣṭa-ṣaṣṭiṣu: among the sixty-eight
• aṣṭa-ṣaṣṭiṣu: Adhikarana (Domain/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: aṣṭa-ṣaṣṭi (प्रातिपदिक; अष्ट + षष्टि)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; सप्तमी (7th), बहुवचन; अधिकरण; ‘अष्टषष्टि’ = 68 (in the sixty-eight)

• gotrāṇām: of the lineages (gotras)
• gotrāṇām: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gotra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; षष्ठी (6th), बहुवचन; सम्बन्ध

• nāyakatve: in leadership
• nāyakatve: Adhikarana (State/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nāyaka-tva (प्रातिपदिक; नायक + त्व)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन; अधिकरण; भाववाचक (state of leadership)

• vyavasthitaḥ: is established/positioned
• vyavasthitaḥ: Karta (Predicate/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vi-ava-sthā (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त; क्त (past passive participle); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विधेय-विशेषण

• tava: your
• tava: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yusmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6th), एकवचन; सम्बन्ध

• vākyena: by (your) word/command
• vākyena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vākya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन; करण

• sarvāṇi: all
• sarvāṇi: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), बहुवचन; विशेषण (gotrāṇi)

• gotrāṇi: the gotras
• gotrāṇi: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gotra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; कर्ता (of implied verb)

• dvija-sattama: O best of the twice-born
• dvija-sattama: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvija-sattama (प्रातिपदिक; द्विज + सत्तम)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन (8th/सम्बोधन), एकवचन; संबोधन

Speaker

Sūta (narrating a directive/boon addressed to a brāhmaṇa leader)

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Ṛṣis of Naimiṣāraṇya (implied)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A dignified assembly where the appointed dvija-leader stands or sits centrally; representatives of many gotras listen; a symbolic count of ‘68’ is suggested through grouped figures or banners; shrine presence in the background legitimizes authority.

Characters & Entities

• Gotras (68)
• Dvija (brāhmaṇa community)
• Nāgaras (context)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Dharma in a sacred region is upheld through orderly lineage structures guided by qualified spiritual leadership.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The statement belongs to the Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra narrative stream in Nāgara Khaṇḍa’s Tīrthamāhātmya.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No specific rite; it describes the appointment/recognition of leadership overseeing gotra-based community duties.