Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 23

Devanagari script

इत्युक्तवंतं नृपतिर्धनैः संपूज्य तं द्विजम् । अवाप परमां प्रीतिं तद्वागमृतसेवया

Transliteration

ityuktavaṃtaṃ nṛpatirdhanaiḥ saṃpūjya taṃ dvijam | avāpa paramāṃ prītiṃ tadvāgamṛtasevayā

Translation

Nachdem er so gesprochen hatte, ehrte der König jenen Brāhmaṇa mit Gaben. Indem er den Nektar seiner Worte kostete, erlangte der König tiefe Freude.

Word by Word

• इति: thus
• इति: Sambandha (Relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इति (अव्यय)
• Form: इति-शब्दः (quotative particle)

• उक्तवन्तम्: the one who had spoken
• उक्तवन्तम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उक्तवत् (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; √वच् (वचने) + क्त + वत्)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; क्तवत्-प्रत्ययान्त (perfect participle, ‘having said’)

• नृपतिः: the king
• नृपतिः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नृपति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• धनैः: with wealth, with gifts
• धनैः: Karaṇa (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• संपूज्य: having duly honoured
• संपूज्य: Pūrvakāla-kriyā (Prior action/पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: √पूज् (पूजायाम्) + सम् (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त अव्यय (gerund)

• तम्: him
• तम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• द्विजम्: the brāhmaṇa (twice-born)
• द्विजम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्विज (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• अवाप: obtained
• अवाप: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √आप् (प्राप्तौ) + अव (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• परमाम्: supreme, great
• परमाम्: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: परम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण (agreeing with प्रीतिम्)

• प्रीतिम्: joy, satisfaction
• प्रीतिम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रीति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• तद्वागमृतसेवया: by the service of his nectar-like words
• तद्वागमृतसेवया: Karaṇa (Instrument/Means/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद्-वाक्-अमृत-सेवा (प्रातिपदिक; तद् + वाक् + अमृत + सेवा)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; (षष्ठी/सम्बन्ध-तत्पुरुषः: ‘तस्य वाक्-अमृतस्य सेवा’)

Speaker

Narrator (Purāṇic narrator; specific speaker not explicit in snippet)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A king in a jeweled court offers gifts (gold, cows, cloth) to a seated brāhmaṇa; the brāhmaṇa’s words are visualized as a nectar stream or luminous script entering the king’s heart, producing calm joy.

Characters & Entities

• Brāhmaṇa (dvija)
• King (nṛpati)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Honoring the wise with dāna and reverence brings inner clarity and joy; the sage’s counsel is treated as spiritual nectar.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No tīrtha is referenced; the focus is on dāna and respect toward brāhmaṇas.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Dāna (gifting wealth) and satkāra (formal honoring) of a brāhmaṇa are implied as righteous acts.