Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 55

Devanagari script

ततो विप्राय सा देया सर्वसस्यौघमालिनी । अथान्यच्छृणु राजेन्द्र गोदानस्य तु यत्फलम्

Transliteration

tato viprāya sā deyā sarvasasyaughamālinī | athānyacchṛṇu rājendra godānasya tu yatphalam

Translation

Darum soll sie (die Kuh) einem Brāhmaṇa gegeben werden — sie, geschmückt mit der Fülle von Saat und Ernte. Nun höre weiter, o Bester der Könige, welche Frucht aus der Kuhgabe erwächst.

Word by Word

• ततः: then/thereupon
• ततः: Temporal marker (काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; तदर्थक-क्रम/अनन्तर्य (thereupon/then)

• विप्राय: to a Brahmin
• विप्राय: Sampradana (सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विप्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी (4th/Dative), एकवचन

• सा: she/that (land/Earth)
• सा: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; धरणी/भूमिः इत्यर्थे

• देया: should be given
• देया: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दा (धातु) + यत् (कृत्-प्रत्यय)
• Form: यत्-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (gerundive/obligative), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; विधेय

• सर्वसस्यौघमालिनी: adorned with an abundance of all crops
• सर्वसस्यौघमालिनी: Modifier (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक) + सस्य (प्रातिपदिक) + ओघ (प्रातिपदिक) + मालिनी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (सा इत्यस्य); समासः—सर्वसस्यस्य ओघः (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष) तेन मालिनी (तृतीया-तत्पुरुष/उपपद-समासभावः)

• अथ: now/then
• अथ: Discourse marker (निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; आरम्भ/अनन्तर्य (now/then)

• अन्यत्: something else/further
• अन्यत्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अन्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; कर्मरूपेण (object of ‘शृणु’)

• शृणु: hear/listen
• शृणु: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: श्रु (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (Imperative), परस्मैपद, मध्यमपुरुष (2nd), एकवचन

• राजेन्द्र: O king of kings
• राजेन्द्र: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: राजन् (प्रातिपदिक) + इन्द्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative/8th), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (राज्ञाम् इन्द्रः)

• गोदानस्य: of cow-gifting
• गोदानस्य: Shashthi-sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गो (प्रातिपदिक) + दान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (गवां दानम्)

• तु: indeed
• तु: Discourse particle (निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; विशेष/विरोधार्थक (but/indeed)

• यत्: which
• यत्: Modifier (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; सम्बन्धबोधक (relative)

• फलम्: fruit/result
• फलम्: Karta/Predicate nominative (विधेय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: फल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

Speaker

Narrator addressing the King (explicit: rājendra)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā (Narmadā) kṣetra (contextual)

Type: river

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Rājendra (best of kings)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A richly adorned cow (garlands, cloth, horn decorations) stands beside heaps of grain and harvest motifs; the donor presents the cow to a brāhmaṇa recipient. The narrator turns to address the king, signaling a forthcoming enumeration of go-dāna fruits.

Characters & Entities

• brāhmaṇa
• go-dāna

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Cow-gift is praised as a dharmic act when offered to a qualified brāhmaṇa, promising great spiritual fruit.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The discourse belongs to the Revā Khaṇḍa (Narmadā region), framing dāna as part of the tīrtha’s sacred economy.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Give the cow as dāna specifically to a vipra (brāhmaṇa), then the text proceeds to describe the resulting merit.