Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 26

Devanagari script

तृणं वाथ मृगस्तत्र किं पुनर्भक्तिमान्नरः । यस्तत्र कुरुते श्राद्धं श्रद्धया फाल्गुने नरः

Transliteration

tṛṇaṃ vātha mṛgastatra kiṃ punarbhaktimānnaraḥ | yastatra kurute śrāddhaṃ śraddhayā phālgune naraḥ

Translation

Wenn dort sogar Gras oder ein Hirsch betroffen ist, wie viel mehr ein Mensch voller Bhakti. Wer dort im Monat Phālguna in gläubiger Hingabe das Śrāddha vollzieht—

Word by Word

• tṛṇam: grass
• tṛṇam: Karta (Subject; in ellipsis)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tṛṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular)

• vā: or
• vā: Vikalpa (Alternative)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vā (अव्यय)
• Form: विकल्प-अव्यय (or)

• atha: then/and also
• atha: Sambandha (Discourse connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atha (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (particle; sequence/transition)

• mṛgaḥ: a deer/animal
• mṛgaḥ: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mṛga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative), एकवचन (Singular)

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikaraṇa (Location)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक अव्यय (locative adverb)

• kim: what?
• kim: Prayojaka (Rhetorical interrogative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular); प्रश्नवाचक (interrogative)

• punar: again; moreover
• punar: Kriyā-viśeṣaṇa (Adverb)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: punar (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb)

• bhaktimān: devout; possessing devotion
• bhaktimān: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier of naraḥ)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bhakti (प्रातिपदिक) + mat (प्रत्यय)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); मतुप्-प्रत्ययान्त (possessive adjective)

• naraḥ: a man
• naraḥ: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative), एकवचन (Singular)

• yaḥ: who
• yaḥ: Karta (Subject of kurute)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); सम्बन्धक (relative pronoun)

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikaraṇa (Location)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक अव्यय

• kurute: does/performs
• kurute: Kriyā (Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kṛ (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular); आत्मनेपदम्

• śrāddham: śrāddha rite
• śrāddham: Karma (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śrāddha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), द्वितीया (Accusative), एकवचन (Singular)

• śraddhayā: with faith
• śraddhayā: Karaṇa (Instrument/means)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śraddhā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), तृतीया (Instrumental), एकवचन (Singular)

• phālgune: in (the month of) Phālguna
• phālgune: Adhikaraṇa (Time)
• Type: Noun
• Root: phālguna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine) / मासवाचकः; सप्तमी (Locative), एकवचन (Singular)

• naraḥ: the man
• naraḥ: Karta (Subject; appositional)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); पुनरुक्ति—सम्बोधन/उपसंहारार्थं

Speaker

Unspecified narrator within the Purāṇic frame

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra (śrāddha-sthāna within it)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: (Not shown in excerpt)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A devotee in simple garments prepares śrāddha offerings on kusa grass near a sacred precinct; deer and birds linger peacefully, suggesting the place’s influence on all beings; Phālguna’s gentle spring atmosphere pervades.

Characters & Entities

• Śrāddha
• Phālguna (month)
• Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra (context)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Tīrthas amplify religious acts; a faithful śrāddha performed at the right place and time yields exceptional ancestral benefit.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra tīrtha-region, where śrāddha is praised as especially efficacious.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Performing Śrāddha at that place, with faith, specifically in the month of Phālguna.