Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 13

Devanagari script

प्रातरन्वेषयामास मुनिर्वस्त्रमितस्ततः । ततः सा ब्राह्मणी प्राह किं अन्वेषयसे प्रभो । केन कार्यं तव तथा वदस्व मम तत्त्वतः

Transliteration

prātaranveṣayāmāsa munirvastramitastataḥ | tataḥ sā brāhmaṇī prāha kiṃ anveṣayase prabho | kena kāryaṃ tava tathā vadasva mama tattvataḥ

Translation

Am Morgen suchte der Weise hierhin und dorthin nach seinem Gewand. Da sprach die Brāhmaṇī: „O Herr, wonach suchst du? Zu welchem Zweck tust du dies? Sage mir die Wahrheit.“

Word by Word

• prātaḥ: in the morning
• prātaḥ: Adhikarana (Time/कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: prātaḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (indeclinable adverb of time: 'in the morning')

• anveṣayāmāsa: searched
• anveṣayāmāsa: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: anu-√iṣ (अन्वेष्/इष्) (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect); परस्मैपद; प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (singular)

• muniḥ: the sage
• muniḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: muni (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st case), एकवचन

• vastram: cloth/garment
• vastram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vastra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (2nd case), एकवचन

• itaḥ: from here
• itaḥ: Apadana (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: itaḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; दिशावाचक (indeclinable adverb: 'from here/this side')

• tataḥ: then/from there
• tataḥ: Adhikarana (Sequence/क्रम)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रमवाचक/ततः (then/from there)

• tataḥ: then
• tataḥ: Adhikarana (Sequence/क्रम)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रमवाचक (then)

• sā: she
• sā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; प्रथमा, एकवचन (pronoun)

• brāhmaṇī: the brahmin woman
• brāhmaṇī: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brāhmaṇī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; प्रथमा, एकवचन

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

• kim: what
• kim: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया, एकवचन (interrogative pronoun used adverbially: 'what?')

• anveṣayase: do you search
• anveṣayase: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: anu-√iṣ (अन्वेष्/इष्) (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present); आत्मनेपद; मध्यमपुरुष (2nd person), एकवचन

• prabho: O lord/sir
• prabho: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prabhu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन (Vocative), एकवचन

• kena: by what/for what reason
• kena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; तृतीया (3rd case), एकवचन (instrumental: 'by what/with what')

• kāryam: purpose/need
• kāryam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kārya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन (here: predicate noun 'need/business')

• tava: your
• tava: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yusmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6th case), एकवचन (genitive: 'your')

• tathā: thus/so
• tathā: Kriya-vishesana (Manner/प्रकार)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकारवाचक (indeclinable adverb: 'thus/so')

• vadasva: tell (me)
• vadasva: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vad (वद्) (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (Imperative); आत्मनेपद; मध्यमपुरुष, एकवचन

• mama: to me/my
• mama: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी, एकवचन (genitive: 'to me/of me')

• tattvataḥ: truthfully/in detail
• tattvataḥ: Kriya-vishesana (Manner/प्रकार)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tattvatas (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; तत्त्वतः (indeclinable adverb: 'truly/in reality')

Speaker

Narrator; direct speech by the Brāhmaṇī (Tāpasī)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā (Narmadā) tīrtha ambit

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: At dawn near a riverside hermitage/settlement, a sage searches for a garment; a brāhmaṇī approaches and asks with respectful candor what he seeks and why.

Characters & Entities

• Yājñavalkya
• Tāpasī

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Dharma is supported by truthful inquiry and direct speech—asking for the real purpose (tattvataḥ) behind actions.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No sacred site is named in this verse; it is a narrative exchange within the Revā Khaṇḍa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; the verse is primarily dialogic and narrative.