Skanda Purana — Vishnu Khanda, Shloka 5

Devanagari script

जंबूवनरता ये च ये गोदावरिवासिनः । वाराणसीश्रिता ये च मथुरावासिनस्तथा

Transliteration

jaṃbūvanaratā ye ca ye godāvarivāsinaḥ | vārāṇasīśritā ye ca mathurāvāsinastathā

Translation

凡乐居瞻部林者，凡依戈达瓦丽河而住者，凡归依瓦拉纳西者，亦复住于摩图罗者——诸圣皆在彼会。

Word by Word

• जंबूवनरताः: devoted to (dwelling in) the Jambū forest
• जंबूवनरताः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: जंबू-वन-रत (प्रातिपदिक; रत < √ram (धातु) क्त-प्रत्ययान्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा-विभक्तिः, बहुवचनम्; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त

• ये: who (those)
• ये: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (प्रातिपदिक/सर्वनाम)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा-विभक्तिः, बहुवचनम्

• च: and
• च: Connector (समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्ययम् (conjunction)

• ये: who (those)
• ये: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (प्रातिपदिक/सर्वनाम)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा-विभक्तिः, बहुवचनम्

• गोदावरिवासिनः: dwellers on the Godāvarī
• गोदावरिवासिनः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गोदावरी-वासिन् (प्रातिपदिक; वासिन् < √vas (धातु) णिनि-प्रत्ययान्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा-विभक्तिः, बहुवचनम्; णिनि-प्रत्ययान्त

• वाराणसीश्रिताः: residing in Vārāṇasī
• वाराणसीश्रिताः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वाराणसी-श्रित (प्रातिपदिक; श्रित < √śri (धातु) क्त-प्रत्ययान्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा-विभक्तिः, बहुवचनम्; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त

• ये: who (those)
• ये: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (प्रातिपदिक/सर्वनाम)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा-विभक्तिः, बहुवचनम्

• च: and
• च: Connector (समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्ययम् (conjunction)

• मथुरावासिनः: residents of Mathurā
• मथुरावासिनः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मथुरा-वासिन् (प्रातिपदिक; वासिन् < √vas (धातु) णिनि-प्रत्ययान्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा-विभक्तिः, बहुवचनम्; णिनि-प्रत्ययान्त

• तथा: likewise/also
• तथा: Connector/Adverbial (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम् (adverb)

Speaker

Sūta (narrating the gathering of sages)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Godāvarī; Vārāṇasī; Mathurā; Jambūvana

Type: river

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Ṛṣi assembly at Naimiṣāraṇya

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Sages from four sacred zones: riverbank hermits of Godāvarī with flowing water and ghāṭa steps; Kāśī ascetics with a distant liṅga-temple silhouette; Mathurā devotees with Yamunā-like ghāṭas and Krishna iconography; and a forest group from Jambūvana—converging toward the central Naimiṣa assembly.

Characters & Entities

• Jambūvana
• Godāvarī
• Vārāṇasī (Kāśī)
• Mathurā

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The Purāṇic vision treats India’s tīrthas as a single sacred mandala, uniting sages from diverse holy centers for dharma-teaching.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Vārāṇasī (Kāśī) and Mathurā are explicitly named, alongside the Godāvarī river-region and Jambūvana.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct ritual instruction appears; the verse functions as a sacred-geography roll call.