Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 16

Devanagari script

जमदग्निरुवाच । अयुतैः प्रयुतैर्नाहं शतकोटिभिरुत्तमाम् । कामधेनुमिमां तात न दद्मि प्रतिगम्यताम्

Transliteration

jamadagniruvāca | ayutaiḥ prayutairnāhaṃ śatakoṭibhiruttamām | kāmadhenumimāṃ tāta na dadmi pratigamyatām

Translation

Jamadagni sprach: „Weder für Zehntausende noch für Hunderttausende, ja nicht einmal für Hunderte von Krores gebe ich diese höchste Kāmadhenū preis, mein Sohn. Bringt sie zurück.“

Word by Word

• jamadagniḥ: Jamadagni
• jamadagniḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jamadagni (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; व्यक्तिनाम

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (परोक्षभूत/Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• ayutaiḥ: with ten-thousands
• ayutaiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ayuta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), बहुवचन; संख्यावाचक

• prayutaiḥ: with hundred-thousands (prayutas)
• prayutaiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prayuta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), बहुवचन; संख्यावाचक

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

• aham: I
• aham: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• śata-koṭibhiḥ: with hundreds of crores
• śata-koṭibhiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śata (प्रातिपदिक) + koṭi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (determinative: ‘hundred crores’)

• uttamām: the best, excellent
• uttamām: Visheshana (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: uttama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; विशेषण

• kāma-dhenum: the wish-fulfilling cow
• kāma-dhenum: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāma (प्रातिपदिक) + dhenu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (determinative: ‘wish-fulfilling cow’)

• imām: this
• imām: Visheshana (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; सर्वनाम, विशेषण

• tāta: dear one / son
• tāta: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tāta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8), एकवचन

• na: not
• na: Pratishedha (Negation/निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक निपात

• dadmi: I give
• dadmi: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √dā (धातु)
• Form: लट् (वर्तमान), उत्तमपुरुष (1st person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद; वैदिक/छान्दस रूप (dadāmi का संक्षिप्त रूप)

• pratigamyatām: let it be returned / taken back
• pratigamyatām: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: prati-√gam (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (आज्ञार्थ/imperative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; आत्मनेपद; कर्मणि/भावे प्रयोग: ‘let it be taken back/returned’

Speaker

Jamadagni

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā (Narmadā) tīrtha milieu

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Bhārata (frame addressee)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Sage Jamadagni, calm yet firm, refuses immense wealth, gesturing protectively toward the radiant Kāmadhenū/Surabhī within the hermitage.

Characters & Entities

• Jamadagni
• Kāmadhenū

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Dharma is not for sale; what is sacred must be protected even against immense worldly offers.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Revā Khaṇḍa context aligns the episode with the sanctity of the Narmadā region, though this verse itself is narrative rather than a site-eulogy.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No ritual is prescribed; the emphasis is ethical—refusal to commodify sacred gifts and powers.