Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 164

Devanagari script

षष्ठी ब्रह्मैकता प्रोक्ता सप्तमी सिद्धिरेव च । सप्त नद्योऽत्र कथिता ब्रह्मणा परमेष्ठिना

Transliteration

ṣaṣṭhī brahmaikatā proktā saptamī siddhireva ca | sapta nadyo'tra kathitā brahmaṇā parameṣṭhinā

Translation

第六被宣说为与梵（Brahman）合一；第七确为成就（siddhi）。于此所说七条圣河，乃由梵天（Brahmā）、至上者帕拉梅什提因所教示。

Word by Word

• ṣaṣṭhī: sixth
• ṣaṣṭhī: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ṣaṣṭhī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्गे, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; क्रमवाचक-विशेषण

• brahma-ekatā: oneness with Brahman
• brahma-ekatā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक) + ekatā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (षष्ठीसम्बन्धः: ‘ब्रह्मणः एकता’); स्त्रीलिङ्गे, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• proktā: is declared
• proktā: Kriyā (Predicate/क्रिया-समर्थ)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra-√vac (धातु) + kta (क्त)
• Form: कृदन्त (भूतकृदन्त/क्त) कर्मणि-प्रयोगसामर्थ्ये; स्त्रीलिङ्गे, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; ‘प्रोक्ता’ = ‘said/declared’ (predicate)

• saptamī: seventh
• saptamī: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: saptamī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्गे, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; क्रमवाचक-विशेषण

• siddhiḥ: attainment / success
• siddhiḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: siddhi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्गे, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• eva: indeed / just
• eva: Sambandha (Emphasis/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारणार्थक (emphatic particle)

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

• sapta: seven
• sapta: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sapta (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययवत् संख्या-विशेषण; (लिङ्ग/विभक्ति/वचन) विशेष्य-समन्वयेन; अत्र स्त्रीलिङ्ग-बहुवचन-विशेषण (नद्यः)

• nadyaḥ: rivers
• nadyaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nadī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्गे, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन

• atra: here
• atra: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक

• kathitāḥ: are described
• kathitāḥ: Kriyā (Predicate/क्रिया-समर्थ)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kath (धातु) + ita (क्त)
• Form: कृदन्त (भूतकृदन्त/क्त) कर्मणि; स्त्रीलिङ्गे, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; ‘कथिताः’ = ‘have been told’

• brahmaṇā: by Brahmā
• brahmaṇā: Karta (Agent in passive/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन

• parameṣṭhinā: by the Supreme Lord (Parameṣṭhin)
• parameṣṭhinā: Karta (Agent in passive/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: parameṣṭhin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन; उपाधि/विशेषणरूपेण ब्रह्मणः

Speaker

Lomaharṣaṇa (Sūta) to the sages (deduced from Māheśvara-khaṇḍa context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Sapta-nadī of Vidyāvana (inner)

Type: sangam

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Seven radiant rivers converge into a single luminous ocean labeled ‘Brahman’; above, Brahmā (four-faced) gestures in teaching; a yogin dissolves into light, signifying brahmaikatā, while subtle siddhi symbols (lotus, flame, vajra) appear as secondary motifs.

Characters & Entities

• Brahmā (Parameṣṭhin)
• Brahman
• Sapta Nadī (seven rivers)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

It frames spiritual progress as culminating in Brahman-oneness and siddhi, linking inner realization with tīrtha-māhātmya.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

A sacred setting characterized by the presence/teaching of “seven rivers”; the precise toponym is not stated in this verse alone.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit rite is prescribed here; the verse outlines stages/fruit (brahmaikatā, siddhi) and introduces the seven-river sanctity.