Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 34

Devanagari script

बह्वीश्च नैचिकीर्दत्त्वा श्रद्धयात्र सदक्षिणाः । शय्योत्तरांश्च प्रत्येकं पितॄंस्तत्र सुवासयेत्

Transliteration

bahvīśca naicikīrdattvā śraddhayātra sadakṣiṇāḥ | śayyottarāṃśca pratyekaṃ pitṝṃstatra suvāsayet

Translation

সেখানে শ্রদ্ধাসহ যথোচিত দক্ষিণাসহ বহু নৈচিকী দান করে, শয্যা ও অতিরিক্ত দান নিবেদন করলে, সেই পুণ্যলোকে প্রত্যেক পিতৃকে সুখে প্রতিষ্ঠিত করা যায়।

Word by Word

• bahvīḥ: many
• bahvīḥ: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bahvī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), बहुवचन; (नैचिकीः इति विशेषणम्)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयार्थक-निपात (conjunction)

• naicikīḥ: naicikī offerings/gifts
• naicikīḥ: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: naicikī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), बहुवचन; (विशेष-दान/वस्तु-नाम)

• dattvā: having given
• dattvā: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √dā (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्ययकृदन्त (absolutive/gerund); धातुः √dā (दा)

• śraddhayā: with faith
• śraddhayā: Karaṇa (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śraddhā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), एकवचन

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

• sa-dakṣiṇāḥ: together with fees (dakṣiṇā)
• sa-dakṣiṇāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sa (उपसर्ग/सह) + dakṣiṇā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), बहुवचन; अव्ययीभावः (सदक्षिणाः = दक्षिणाभिः सह)

• śayyā-uttarān: beds with coverings
• śayyā-uttarān: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śayyā (प्रातिपदिक) + uttara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), बहुवचन; तत्पुरुषः (शय्यायाः उत्तराः = bedding with cover/upper cloths)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयार्थक-निपात (conjunction)

• pratyekam: each, individually
• pratyekam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: pratyeka (अव्यय/प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय; वितरणार्थक-अव्यय (distributive adverb)

• pitṝn: the ancestors
• pitṝn: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pitṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), बहुवचन

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक-अव्यय

• su-vāsayet: should lodge/settle comfortably
• su-vāsayet: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: su (उपसर्ग) + √vas (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपदम्, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; धातुः √vas (वस्, निवासे) causative sense ‘to cause to dwell’

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kṣīroda vicinity (tatra)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A śrāddha pavilion by the ghāṭa: offerings arranged, brāhmaṇas receiving dakṣiṇā; in a celestial overlay, ancestors recline peacefully on beds, indicating ‘comfortable settlement’.

Characters & Entities

• Pitṛs (ancestors)
• Kṣīroda/Kāśī context (implied)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Ancestral rites become fruitful when performed with śraddhā (faith) and generosity, ensuring well-being for the Pitṛs.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The same Kāśī tīrtha-region under discussion (Kṣīroda/Kṣīrābdhi vicinity), famed for Pitṛ-kṛtya.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Giving prescribed donations with dakṣiṇā, including śayyā-dāna (gift of a bed) and supplementary gifts during śrāddha-related observances.