Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 5

Devanagari script

अर्चयेद्देवमीशानं विष्णुं वा परमेश्वरम् । यत्फलं सर्वयज्ञानां विधिवद्दक्षिणावताम्

Transliteration

arcayeddevamīśānaṃ viṣṇuṃ vā parameśvaram | yatphalaṃ sarvayajñānāṃ vidhivaddakṣiṇāvatām

Translation

Man soll den Herrn Īśāna verehren oder Viṣṇu, den höchsten Herrn. Welcher Ertrag auch immer aus allen Yajñas entsteht, die regelgemäß und mit gebührender Dakṣiṇā vollzogen werden,—

Word by Word

• arcayet: should worship
• arcayet: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: arc (अर्च् धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपदम्, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; ‘अर्चयेत्’ = should worship

• devam: the god
• devam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• īśānam: Īśāna (Śiva)
• īśānam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: īśāna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; देवस्य विशेषनाम (epithet of Śiva)

• viṣṇum: Viṣṇu
• viṣṇum: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viṣṇu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• vā: or
• vā: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; विकल्पार्थक निपातः (disjunctive particle ‘or’)

• parameśvaram: the Supreme Lord
• parameśvaram: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: parama (प्रातिपदिक) + īśvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; समासः—परमः ईश्वरः इति कर्मधारयः; विशेषनाम (epithet)

• yat: which
• yat: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; सम्बन्धबोधक (relative pronoun)

• phalam: fruit/result
• phalam: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: phala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• sarvayajñānām: of all sacrifices
• sarvayajñānām: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक) + yajña (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), बहुवचन; समासः—सर्वे यज्ञाः इति कर्मधारयः; ‘of all sacrifices’

• vidhivat: according to proper rule
• vidhivat: Kriya-visheshana (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vidhi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय; तद्धितान्त अव्यय (वत्) ‘विधिवत्’ = according to rule

• dakṣiṇāvatām: of (sacrifices) accompanied by fees
• dakṣiṇāvatām: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dakṣiṇā (प्रातिपदिक) + -vat (वत् तद्धित)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, बहुवचन; ‘दक्षिणावत्’ = endowed with sacrificial fees; ‘of those who have dakṣiṇā’

Speaker

Mārkaṇḍeya

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Brahmāvarta (context)

Type: ghat

Visual Art Cues

Scene: At a riverbank shrine, a devotee offers flowers and water to a Śiva-liṅga (Īśāna) while another offers tulasī to a Viṣṇu icon; above them, symbolic fire-altars appear faintly, indicating yajña-fruit being granted through pūjā.

Characters & Entities

• Īśāna (Śiva)
• Viṣṇu

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

At a great tīrtha, sincere worship can confer the same merit as elaborate Vedic sacrifices performed with full correctness and generosity.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The ongoing context is Brahmāvarta Tīrtha in Revā Khaṇḍa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Arcana (worship) of Īśāna (Śiva) or Viṣṇu, with the merit compared to properly performed yajñas with dakṣiṇā.