Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 121

Devanagari script

धान्यदः शाश्वतं सौख्यं ब्रह्मदो ब्रह्म शाश्वतम् । वार्यन्नपृथिवीवासस्तिलकाञ्चनसर्पिषाम्

Transliteration

dhānyadaḥ śāśvataṃ saukhyaṃ brahmado brahma śāśvatam | vāryannapṛthivīvāsastilakāñcanasarpiṣām

Translation

Wer Getreide spendet, erlangt dauerndes Glück; wer heiliges Wissen schenkt, erreicht den ewigen Brahman. Ebenso verdienstvoll sind die Gaben von Wasser, Speise, Land, Wohnstatt, Sesam, Gold und Ghee.

Word by Word

• धान्यदः: one who gives grain
• धान्यदः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धान्य (प्रातिपदिक) + द (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; दा)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; उपपद-तत्पुरुष (धान्यं ददाति)

• शाश्वतम्: eternal
• शाश्वतम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शाश्वत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; 'सौख्यम्' इत्यस्य विशेषण

• सौख्यम्: happiness, comfort
• सौख्यम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सौख्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• ब्रह्मदः: one who gives Brahman/knowledge (or Vedic gift)
• ब्रह्मदः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्मन् (प्रातिपदिक) + द (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; दा)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; उपपद-तत्पुरुष (ब्रह्म ददाति)

• ब्रह्म: Brahman, sacred knowledge
• ब्रह्म: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया/प्रथमा (2nd/1st), एकवचन; फल-रूपेण (as result)

• शाश्वतम्: eternal
• शाश्वतम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शाश्वत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया/प्रथमा, एकवचन; 'ब्रह्म' इत्यस्य विशेषण

• वार्यन्नपृथिवीवासः: (one who gives) water, food, land, and dwelling
• वार्यन्नपृथिवीवासः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वारि (प्रातिपदिक) + अन्न (प्रातिपदिक) + पृथिवी (प्रातिपदिक) + वास (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समासः—द्वन्द्व (वारि च अन्नं च पृथिवी च वासः च) बहुपद-समाहार; दानकर्तृवाचक (giver implied)

• तिलकाञ्चनसर्पिषाम्: of sesame, gold, and ghee
• तिलकाञ्चनसर्पिषाम्: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तिल (प्रातिपदिक) + काञ्चन (प्रातिपदिक) + सर्पिस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्ग-समाहार, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), बहुवचन; समासः—द्वन्द्व (तिलं च काञ्चनं च सर्पिः च)

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) (deduced for Āvantya Khaṇḍa narrative style)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Uttānapāda

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A granary and heaps of grain offered to the needy; a teacher handing palm-leaf manuscripts to a student (brahma-dāna); water pots and ghee vessels arranged; the river and a small āśrama behind.

Characters & Entities

• Brahman

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Among charitable acts, giving sustenance grants enduring well-being, while giving sacred knowledge points toward liberation and the eternal reality.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The instruction is embedded in the Revā Khaṇḍa, associated with the sanctity of the Revā/Narmadā region.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Dānas of grain and brahma (teaching), with additional praised gifts: water, food, land, dwelling, sesame, gold, and ghee.