Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 24

Devanagari script

एतद्वः सर्वमाख्यातं माधबीजन्मसम्भवम् । सुपर्णाख्यस्य देवस्य कथासंगाद्द्विजोत्तमाः

Transliteration

etadvaḥ sarvamākhyātaṃ mādhabījanmasambhavam | suparṇākhyasya devasya kathāsaṃgāddvijottamāḥ

Translation

Hỡi các bậc tối thắng trong hàng nhị sinh, ta đã thuật trọn vẹn cho các ông câu chuyện về sự ra đời của Mādhavī—khởi lên do mối liên hệ với truyền tích của vị thần mang danh Suparṇa.

Word by Word

• etat: this
• etat: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); सर्वनाम

• vaḥ: to you / for you
• vaḥ: Sampradāna (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yusmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6th/Genitive) वा चतुर्थी (4th/Dative), बहुवचन (Plural); एन्क्लिटिक सर्वनाम

• sarvam: all
• sarvam: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjective of object)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन (Singular)

• ākhyātam: has been narrated
• ākhyātam: Kriya (Predicate in passive)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ā-√khyā (धातु)
• Form: क्त (past participle); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom/Acc), एकवचन (Singular); कर्मणि-प्रयोग (passive sense)

• mādhavī-janma-sambhavam: arising from Mādhavī’s birth
• mādhavī-janma-sambhavam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier of 'etat/sarvam')
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mādhavī (प्रातिपदिक) + janma (प्रातिपदिक) + sambhava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन (Singular); तत्पुरुष-समास (mādhavyāḥ janma-sambhavam = arising from Mādhavī’s birth)

• suparṇa-ākhyasya: of the one named Suparṇa
• suparṇa-ākhyasya: Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: suparṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + ākhya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन (Singular); तत्पुरुष-समास (suparṇa-nāmnaḥ)

• devasya: of the god
• devasya: Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन (Singular)

• kathā-saṃgāt: from the connection with the story
• kathā-saṃgāt: Hetu/Apādāna (Cause/Ablative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kathā (प्रातिपदिक) + saṃga (प्रातिपदik)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/Ablative), एकवचन (Singular); तत्पुरुष-समास (kathāyāḥ saṃgaḥ)

• dvija-uttamāḥ: O best of the twice-born
• dvija-uttamāḥ: Sambodhana (Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvija (प्रातिपदिक) + uttama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/Vocative), बहुवचन (Plural); कर्मधारय-समास

Speaker

Sūta (deduced: narrative closure formula addressing sages/Brāhmaṇas)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: brāhmaṇas (dvijottamāḥ)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Sūta concludes: the full account of Mādhavī’s birth is told, explicitly tied to the narrative stream of Suparṇa (Garuḍa). Visualize Garuḍa as a symbolic presence—wings spread above the narrative, indicating divine sanction.

Characters & Entities

• Mādhavī
• Suparṇa (Garuda epithet)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

It emphasizes faithful transmission of sacred kathā as a means of preserving dharma and tīrtha-glory.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse is a narrative transition within Tīrthamāhātmya; the precise tīrtha is not named in this line.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct ritual is prescribed here; it signals completion of a narrated episode.