Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 5

Devanagari script

कार्त्तिकस्य तु मासस्य कृष्णपक्षे त्रयोदशीम् । उपोष्य वै नरो भक्त्या सर्वपापैः प्रमुच्यते

Transliteration

kārttikasya tu māsasya kṛṣṇapakṣe trayodaśīm | upoṣya vai naro bhaktyā sarvapāpaiḥ pramucyate

Translation

Wahrlich, wer im Monat Kārttika am dreizehnten Tag der dunklen Monatshälfte in Hingabe fastet, wird von allen Sünden befreit.

Word by Word

• kārttikasya: of (the month) Kārttika
• kārttikasya: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kārttika (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (6th/Genitive), एकवचन — 'of Kārttika (month)'

• tu: but/indeed
• tu: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात/particle (contrast/emphasis)

• māsasya: of the month
• māsasya: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: māsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (6th/Genitive), एकवचन — 'of the month'

• kṛṣṇapakṣe: in the dark fortnight
• kṛṣṇapakṣe: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṛṣṇa-pakṣa (प्रातिपदिक; कृष्ण + पक्ष)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (7th/Locative), एकवचन — 'in the dark fortnight'

• trayodaśīm: the thirteenth lunar day
• trayodaśīm: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: trayodaśī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन — 'the thirteenth (tithi)'

• upoṣya: having fasted
• upoṣya: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial to main verb/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: upa-√vas (धातु; उप + वस्)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund), अव्ययभाव; 'having fasted'

• vai: indeed
• vai: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vai (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात/particle (emphasis)

• naraḥ: a man
• naraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• bhaktyā: with devotion
• bhaktyā: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhakti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन — 'with devotion'

• sarvapāpaiḥ: from all sins
• sarvapāpaiḥ: Apadana (Ablative sense/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarva-pāpa (प्रातिपदिक; सर्व + पाप)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (3rd/Instrumental), बहुवचन — 'from all sins' (instrumental used with passive)

• pramucyate: is freed
• pramucyate: Kriya (Main verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra-√muc (धातु; प्र + मुच्)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; कर्मणि-प्रयोग (passive)

Speaker

Mārkaṇḍeya

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā-tīrtha (contextual); linked observance leading into Śakreśvara praise

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Pāṇḍunandana (a Pāṇḍava addressed)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A devotee observing upavāsa on Kārttika kṛṣṇa-trayodaśī near a riverbank tīrtha; lamps and offerings arranged, with a distant Śiva shrine suggested.

Characters & Entities

• Kārttika (month)
• Trayodaśī (tithi)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Time-sanctified observances (vratas) performed with bhakti become powerful means of purification.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The vrata instruction occurs within the Śakratīrtha māhātmya context on the Narmadā’s southern bank.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Upavāsa (fasting) on Kārttika month’s kṛṣṇa-pakṣa Trayodaśī, performed with devotion.