Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 93

Devanagari script

ततः प्रभातसमये स्नात्वा वै नर्मदाजले । तर्पणं विधिवत्कृत्वा पित्ःणां देवपूर्वकम्

Transliteration

tataḥ prabhātasamaye snātvā vai narmadājale | tarpaṇaṃ vidhivatkṛtvā pitḥṇāṃ devapūrvakam

Translation

Dann, zur Morgenröte, bade man im Wasser der Narmadā. Danach vollziehe man das tarpaṇa ordnungsgemäß: zuerst den Göttern, dann den Ahnen, nach rechtem Ritus.

Word by Word

• ततः: then
• ततः: Kriya-visheshana (Sequence/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रमवाचक (then)

• प्रभातसमये: at dawn-time
• प्रभातसमये: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रभात (प्रातिपदिक) + समय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, सप्तमी (locative/अधिकरण), एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (प्रभातस्य समये)

• स्नात्वा: having bathed
• स्नात्वा: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्ना (धातु) + त्वा (क्त्वा)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund/absolutive)

• वै: indeed
• वै: Nipata (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वै (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निश्चयार्थक निपात

• नर्मदाजले: in the waters of the Narmadā
• नर्मदाजले: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नर्मदा (प्रातिपदिक) + जल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (locative/अधिकरण), एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (नर्मदायाः जलम्)

• तर्पणम्: libation/oblatory offering (tarpaṇa)
• तर्पणम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तर्पण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (accusative/कर्म), एकवचन

• विधिवत्: according to the prescribed rite
• विधिवत्: Kriya-visheshana (Manner/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: विधिवत् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकारवाचक (according to rule)

• कृत्वा: having done
• कृत्वा: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु) + त्वा (क्त्वा)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund/absolutive)

• पितṝणाम्: of the ancestors / for the ancestors
• पितṝणाम्: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, षष्ठी (genitive/सम्बन्ध), बहुवचन

• देवपूर्वकम्: with the gods first (preceding)
• देवपूर्वकम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: देव (प्रातिपदिक) + पूर्वक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (accusative), एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (देवान् पूर्वं कृत्वा = with the gods first)

Speaker

Unspecified (instructional passage within Revā Khaṇḍa)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Narmadā (Revā)

Type: river

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Dawn on the Narmadā: pale sun, mist over water; a devotee stands waist-deep offering water with cupped hands, first upward (devas) then southward (pitṛs), with kusa grass and a small vessel on the bank.

Characters & Entities

• Narmadā
• Devas
• Pitṛs (ancestors)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Purity of place and purity of procedure together make ancestral rites effective and dharmically complete.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Narmadā (Revā) and her tīrthas, central to the Revā Khaṇḍa’s sacred geography.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Prabhāta-snānā (dawn bathing) in Narmadā and vidhivat tarpaṇa for gods first, then ancestors.