Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 72

Devanagari script

गोब्राह्मणा हता नित्यमिह लोके परत्र च । नाशितान्यन्नपानानि मठारामाश्रमास्तथा

Transliteration

gobrāhmaṇā hatā nityamiha loke paratra ca | nāśitānyannapānāni maṭhārāmāśramāstathā

Translation

Kühe und Brāhmaṇas sind fortwährend verletzt worden, in dieser Welt wie in der jenseitigen. Vorräte an Speise und Trank wurden vernichtet, ebenso Klöster, Gärten und Āśramas.

Word by Word

• गो-ब्राह्मणाः: cows and Brahmins
• गो-ब्राह्मणाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गो (प्रातिपदिक) + ब्राह्मण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; इतरेतर-द्वन्द्व: ‘गवश्च ब्राह्मणाश्च’

• हताः: killed
• हताः: Karta-anvaya (Predicate adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: हन् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकर्मणि ‘killed’ (गोब्राह्मणाः इत्यस्य विशेषण)

• नित्यम्: always
• नित्यम्: Sambandha (Adverbial/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नित्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषण (adverbial accusative) ‘always’

• इह: here
• इह: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इह (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक अव्यय ‘here’

• लोके: in the world
• लोके: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: लोक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन

• परत्र: in the next world
• परत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: परत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: देश/कालवाचक अव्यय ‘in the other world/thereafter’

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Conjunction/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय (conjunction)

• नाशितानि: destroyed
• नाशितानि: Karta-anvaya (Predicate adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नाशय् (धातु; causative of √नश्) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त ‘destroyed’ (अन्नपानानि इत्यस्य विशेषण)

• अन्न-पानानि: foods and drinks
• अन्न-पानानि: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अन्न (प्रातिपदिक) + पान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; इतरेतर-द्वन्द्व: ‘अन्नानि च पानानि च’

• मठ-आराम-आश्रमाः: monasteries, gardens, and hermitages
• मठ-आराम-आश्रमाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मठ (प्रातिपदिक) + आराम (प्रातिपदिक) + आश्रम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; समाहार/इतरेतर-द्वन्द्व: ‘monasteries, gardens, and hermitages’

• तथा: likewise
• तथा: Sambandha (Adverbial/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषण/समुच्चयार्थ अव्यय ‘likewise/also’

Speaker

Unspecified penitent (contextual speaker within Revā Khaṇḍa narrative)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā-kṣetra (āśrama-maṇḍala)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Bhārata

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A devastated sacred settlement: injured cows, distressed brāhmaṇas, toppled granaries, broken water pots, ruined maṭha buildings and gardens; Bāṇa’s voiceover confession implied amid smoky haze.

Characters & Entities

• Brāhmaṇa
• Go (cow)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Harming cows, brāhmaṇas, and sacred institutions is a grave adharma that brings suffering in both this life and the afterlife.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Revā (Narmadā) region is the overarching tīrtha-context; this line highlights violations against dharmic society rather than a single named spot.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit rite is prescribed; the verse functions as a confession of adharma, implying the need for expiation and refuge in Śiva.