Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 49

Devanagari script

तस्मात्सर्वप्रयत्नेन पूजयेद्वाचकं बुधः । अन्यथा निष्फलं तस्य पुस्तकश्रवणं भवेत्

Transliteration

tasmātsarvaprayatnena pūjayedvācakaṃ budhaḥ | anyathā niṣphalaṃ tasya pustakaśravaṇaṃ bhavet

Translation

অতএব জ্ঞানী ব্যক্তির উচিত সর্বপ্রকারে পাঠককে পূজা-সম্মান করা; নচেৎ তার জন্য পুস্তক-শ্রবণ নিষ্ফল হয়।

Word by Word

• तस्मात्: therefore
• तस्मात्: Hetu/Reason (हेतु)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (हेतु/तस्मात् = ‘therefore/from that’), तद्धित-निपातवत् प्रयोग

• सर्वप्रयत्नेन: with all effort
• सर्वप्रयत्नेन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सर्व + प्रयत्न (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), एकवचन; ‘सर्वः प्रयत्नः’ इति कर्मधारय-समास; करण/उपायार्थे

• पूजयेत्: should worship/honor
• पूजयेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: पूज् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; विध्यर्थः

• वाचकम्: the reciter/reader
• वाचकम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वाचक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन

• बुधः: a wise person
• बुधः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: बुध (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन

• अन्यथा: otherwise
• अन्यथा: Adverbial (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अन्यथा (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (क्रियाविशेषण)

• निष्फलम्: fruitless
• निष्फलम्: Predicate/Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: निष्फल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; ‘पुस्तकश्रवणम्’ इत्यस्य विशेषणम्

• तस्य: of that (person/act)
• तस्य: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• पुस्तकश्रवणम्: hearing/recitation of the book
• पुस्तकश्रवणम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुस्तक + श्रवण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (‘पुस्तकस्य श्रवणम्’)

• भवेत्: would be/should become
• भवेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

Speaker

Śiva (Īśvara)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A wise householder carefully honors the reciter—offering āsana, water, garland, and dakṣiṇā—before opening the sacred book for public hearing; the assembly becomes orderly and luminous, indicating restored fruitfulness.

Characters & Entities

• vācaka (reciter)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Reverence to the teacher is an essential limb of dharma; without it, religious hearing yields no spiritual fruit.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa (Prabhāsakṣetra), where such prescriptions are framed as part of the kṣetra’s dharma.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Perform pūjā (honoring) of the vācaka; otherwise pustaka-śravaṇa is declared niṣphala.