Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 2

Devanagari script

तां च शुक्लचतुर्दश्यामजापालेश्वरीं नरः । यो वै पूजयते भक्त्या धूपपुष्पानुलेपनैः । स प्राप्नोतीप्सितान्कामान्दुर्लभा सर्वमानवैः

Transliteration

tāṃ ca śuklacaturdaśyāmajāpāleśvarīṃ naraḥ | yo vai pūjayate bhaktyā dhūpapuṣpānulepanaiḥ | sa prāpnotīpsitānkāmāndurlabhā sarvamānavaiḥ

Translation

Và ai vào ngày Chaturdaśī của nửa tháng sáng, thành kính thờ phụng Ajāpāleśvarī, dâng hương, hoa và hương liệu xoa bôi, người ấy sẽ đạt được những điều mong cầu—những ân phúc vốn khó được đối với loài người.

Word by Word

• tām: her
• tām: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयबोधक (and)

• śuklacaturdaśyām: on the bright fourteenth (tithi)
• śuklacaturdaśyām: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śukla (प्रातिपदिक) + caturdaśī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative), एकवचन; कालवाचक (on the bright fortnight’s 14th lunar day)

• ajāpāleśvarīm: Ajāpāleśvarī (the goddess)
• ajāpāleśvarīm: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ajāpāla (प्रातिपदिक) + īśvarī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; देवीनाम (name/title)

• naraḥ: a man
• naraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• yaḥ: who
• yaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; सम्बन्धसूचक (relative pronoun)

• vai: indeed
• vai: Sambandha (Emphasis particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vai (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निश्चयार्थक/उपपद (indeed)

• pūjayate: worships
• pūjayate: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pūj (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, आत्मनेपद

• bhaktyā: with devotion
• bhaktyā: Karana (Means/Instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhakti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental), एकवचन

• dhūpa-puṣpa-anulepanaiḥ: with incense, flowers, and unguents
• dhūpa-puṣpa-anulepanaiḥ: Karana (Means/Instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dhūpa (प्रातिपदिक) + puṣpa (प्रातिपदिक) + anulepana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (समाहार-द्वन्द्व), तृतीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; पूजन-द्रव्यसमूह

• saḥ: he
• saḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; अन्वादेश (correlative pronoun)

• prāpnoti: attains
• prāpnoti: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: āp (धातु) + pra- (उपसर्ग)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• īpsitān: desired
• īpsitān: Karma (Object qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: īpsita (प्रातिपदिक; √āp desiderative sense)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषण (desired)

• kāmān: wishes
• kāmān: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāma (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• durlabhāḥ: hard to obtain
• durlabhāḥ: Karma (Object qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: durlabha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषण (for kāmān)

• sarva-mānavaiḥ: by all humans
• sarva-mānavaiḥ: Karana (Reference/Instrumental of comparison)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक) + mānava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental), बहुवचन; सामान्य-कर्तृवाचक (by/for all humans)

Speaker

Sūta (continuing narration)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Ajāpāleśvarī

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Ṛṣis (implied)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A devotee worships Ajāpāleśvarī on bright fortnight caturdaśī, offering incense smoke, garlands, and fragrant unguents; the deity’s grace radiates as boon-bestowing light.

Characters & Entities

• Ajāpāleśvarī
• śukla-caturdaśī
• dhūpa
• puṣpa
• anulepana

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Devotional worship performed on an auspicious tithi, with simple offerings, draws the deity’s grace and fulfills worthy desires.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Ajāpāleśvarī shrine/tīrtha described in Adhyāya 95 of the Nāgarakhaṇḍa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Pūjā of Ajāpāleśvarī on Śukla Caturdaśī using incense (dhūpa), flowers (puṣpa), and unguents (anulepana).