Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 28

Devanagari script

भो भोः सर्पा निवर्तध्वं तपसोऽस्य महत्फलम् । यमिच्छथ ददाम्यद्य नात्र कार्या विचारणा

Transliteration

bho bhoḥ sarpā nivartadhvaṃ tapaso'sya mahatphalam | yamicchatha dadāmyadya nātra kāryā vicāraṇā

Translation

«Ho, ho, ihr Schlangen! Beendet eure Askese. Dieser Tapas hat große Frucht getragen. Was immer ihr wünscht, gewähre ich heute; kein Zögern und kein Abwägen ist nötig.»

Word by Word

• bho: O!
• bho: Sambodhana (Address)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: bho (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (सम्बोधन-निपात/vocative particle)

• bhoḥ: O!
• bhoḥ: Sambodhana (Address)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: bhoḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (सम्बोधन-निपात/vocative particle)

• sarpāḥ: O serpents
• sarpāḥ: Sambodhana (Addressee)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative/सम्बोधन), बहुवचन

• nivartadhvam: turn back/return
• nivartadhvam: Kriyā (Command)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ni-√vṛt (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (Imperative/आज्ञार्थ), मध्यमपुरुष (2nd), बहुवचन; आत्मनेपद; धातु: वृत् = to turn back; उपसर्ग: नि-

• tapasaḥ: of the austerity
• tapasaḥ: Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tapas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), एकवचन

• asya: of this (one)
• asya: Sambandha (Genitive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक, षष्ठी, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• mahat-phalam: great fruit/result
• mahat-phalam: Karma/Pratijñā (Object/complement)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahat (प्रातिपदिक) + phala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; कर्मधारय: 'महत् फलम्'

• yam: which (thing)
• yam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; सर्वनाम; (इच्छथ इत्यस्य कर्म)

• icchatha: you desire
• icchatha: Kriyā (Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √iṣ (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), मध्यमपुरुष, बहुवचन; परस्मैपद; धातु: इष्/इच्छ् = to desire

• dadāmi: I give
• dadāmi: Kriyā (Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √dā (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), उत्तमपुरुष (1st), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• adya: today/now
• adya: Kāla-adhikaraṇa (Time)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: adya (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (कालवाचक/temporal adverb)

• na: not
• na: Pratiṣedha (Negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (निषेध/negation particle)

• atra: here/in this matter
• atra: Deśa-adhikaraṇa (Place)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (देशवाचक/locative adverb)

• kāryā: is necessary
• kāryā: Kartā (Subject of 'is')
• Type: Noun
• Root: kārya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; 'कार्य' = thing to be done/necessity

• vicāraṇā: deliberation/consideration
• vicāraṇā: Kartā (Predicate nominative with implied 'asti')
• Type: Noun
• Root: vicāraṇā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

Speaker

Śiva (Parameśvara/Mahādeva)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā (Narmadā)

Type: river

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Śiva addresses the assembled serpents with a commanding yet benevolent call: stop the austerity; its fruit is achieved; ask and receive now without doubt.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva (Mahādeva)
• Serpents (Nāgas)
• Tapas

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The Purāṇic promise: sincere tapas culminates in the Lord’s direct bestowal of boons—grace is not distant when effort is mature.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Not explicitly; the focus is on Śiva’s boon-giving within the Revā Khaṇḍa narrative milieu.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Tapas is acknowledged as efficacious; no particular vrata or procedure is laid out in this verse.