Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 51

Devanagari script

ततस्तुष्टो जगन्नाथश्चतुर्वदनपङ्कजः । आर्तान्प्राह सुरान्सर्वान्मा विषादं गमिष्यथ

Transliteration

tatastuṣṭo jagannāthaścaturvadanapaṅkajaḥ | ārtānprāha surānsarvānmā viṣādaṃ gamiṣyatha

Translation

Wohlgefällig sprach der Herr der Welt—Brahmā, der lotusangesichtige mit vier Mündern—zu allen bedrängten Göttern: „Fallt nicht in Verzweiflung.“

Word by Word

• tataḥ: then/thereupon
• tataḥ: Adhikarana (Context/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (क्रियाविशेषण) = indeclinable adverb; अर्थे: 'ततः/then'

• tuṣṭaḥ: pleased
• tuṣṭaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tuṣ (धातु) + kta (कृत् प्रत्यय)
• Form: कृदन्त (क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकर्मणि/भूतकाले); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; विशेषण

• jagannāthaḥ: Lord of the world
• jagannāthaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jagat (प्रातिपदिक) + nātha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (जगतः नाथः); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• catur-vadana-paṅkajaḥ: (he) whose face is like the lotus of the four-faced (Brahmā)
• catur-vadana-paṅkajaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: catur (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक) + vadana (प्रातिपदिक) + paṅkaja (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समास (चतुर्वदनस्य पङ्कजम् इव मुखम्/चतुर्वदनपङ्कजः); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; जगन्नाथस्य विशेषण-रूपेण

• ārtān: the afflicted (ones)
• ārtān: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ārta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), बहुवचन

• prāha: said/spoke
• prāha: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra-√ah (धातु: अह्)
• Form: लिट् (परस्मैपद, परोक्षभूत/Perfect); प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• surān: the gods
• surān: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sura (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), बहुवचन

• sarvān: all
• sarvān: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), बहुवचन; विशेषण (सुरान्)

• mā: do not
• mā: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: mā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (निषेध/प्रत्याख्यान); आज्ञार्थे निषेधः, लोट्/विधिलिङ्/लृट्-योगे

• viṣādam: despondency/sorrow
• viṣādam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viṣāda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• gamiṣyatha: you will go/you will fall into
• gamiṣyatha: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √gam (धातु)
• Form: लृट् (भविष्यत्काल/Future), परस्मैपद; मध्यमपुरुष, बहुवचन

Speaker

Brahmā

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā-kṣetra (Narmadā tīrthas)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Śaunaka and sages (typical frame; not stated here)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Brahmā, four-faced and lotus-hued, addresses a gathered host of troubled devas, raising a hand in reassurance; the setting suggests a sacred riverbank hermitage atmosphere.

Characters & Entities

• Brahmā
• Devas

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Even amid ominous events, dharma requires steadiness—despair is countered by divine counsel and patient action.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Revā (Narmadā) region remains the contextual sacred setting, though the verse focuses on theological reassurance.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit rite; the instruction is ethical-spiritual: avoid viṣāda (despair) and follow dharmic guidance.