Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 27

Devanagari script

अद्यप्रभृति सर्वेषामहङ्कारो द्विजन्मनाम् । न पिता पुत्रवाक्येन न पुत्रः पितृकर्मणि

Transliteration

adyaprabhṛti sarveṣāmahaṅkāro dvijanmanām | na pitā putravākyena na putraḥ pitṛkarmaṇi

Translation

Von heute an wird Hochmut alle Zweimalgeborenen ergreifen. Der Vater wird nicht auf den Rat des Sohnes hören, und der Sohn wird die Pflichten des Vaters nicht befolgen.

Word by Word

• अद्यप्रभृति: from today onward
• अद्यप्रभृति: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अद्य + प्रभृति (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अव्ययीभाव-समासः; कालवाचक-अव्ययम् (temporal adverb: 'from today onward')

• सर्वेषाम्: of all
• सर्वेषाम्: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग; षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), बहुवचनम् (genitive plural)

• अहङ्कारः: ego, pride
• अहङ्कारः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अहङ्कार (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचनम् (nominative singular)

• द्विजन्मनाम्: of the twice-born (Brahmins etc.)
• द्विजन्मनाम्: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्विजन्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), बहुवचनम् (genitive plural)

• न: not
• न: Negation (निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्ययम् (negation particle)

• पिता: father
• पिता: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचनम् (nominative singular)

• पुत्रवाक्येन: by the son's word/command
• पुत्रवाक्येन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुत्र + वाक्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचनम् (instrumental singular); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (पुत्रस्य वाक्येन)

• न: not
• न: Negation (निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्ययम् (negation particle)

• पुत्रः: son
• पुत्रः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुत्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचनम् (nominative singular)

• पितृकर्मणि: in the father's duty/rite
• पितृकर्मणि: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ + कर्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचनम् (locative singular); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (पितुः कर्मणि)

Speaker

Lakṣmī (Ramā Devī) (deduced from context 28–29)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā (Narmadā) tīrtha-context (unspecified sub-tīrtha in this verse)

Type: river

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Pārtha (as addressed in nearby verses)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A didactic tableau: twice-born men arguing in a village assembly; father and son turned away from each other, pride visible; a faint divine presence indicating a curse taking effect.

Characters & Entities

• Lakṣmī
• Ahaṅkāra (ego)
• Dvjias (twice-born)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Ahaṅkāra shatters dharmic continuity: humility sustains the passing of wisdom and duty across generations.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific tīrtha is mentioned; the verse occurs within the Revā Khaṇḍa narrative setting.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None directly; it references pitṛ-karma (father’s duties/rites) as part of inherited dharma.