Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 31

Devanagari script

अश्राद्धेयो ह्यपांक्तेयो नागराणां विशेषतः

Transliteration

aśrāddheyo hyapāṃkteyo nāgarāṇāṃ viśeṣataḥ

Translation

Er ist nicht würdig, die Śrāddha-Gaben (śrāddha) zu empfangen, und nicht würdig, in der Speisereihe zu sitzen—zumal unter den Nāgaras.

Word by Word

• अश्राद्धेयः: unfit for śrāddha offerings
• अश्राद्धेयः: Karta-predicative (Predicate adjective/विधेय)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: श्राद्धेय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा एकवचन; नञ्-पूर्वक (अ-श्राद्धेय) — ‘श्राद्धे अयोग्यः’

• हि: indeed
• हि: Sambandha (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: हि (अव्यय)
• Form: हेतौ/निश्चये निपात (indeed/for)

• अपांक्तेयः: unfit to sit in a dining row
• अपांक्तेयः: Karta-predicative (Predicate adjective/विधेय)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पांक्तेय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा एकवचन; नञ्-पूर्वक (अ-पांक्तेय) — ‘पङ्क्तौ अयोग्यः’

• नागराणाम्: of the Nāgaras
• नागराणाम्: Sambandha (Genitive/षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नागर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; षष्ठी बहुवचन (Genitive Plural)

• विशेषतः: especially
• विशेषतः: Kriya-visheshana (Emphasis/विशेष)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: विशेषतः (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रकार/विशेषवाचक-अव्यय (especially)

Speaker

Unspecified (same authority figure; normative dharma statement)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Nāgara-kṣetra (community dharma sphere)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Nāgara brāhmaṇa assembly (implied)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A śrāddha setting with offerings and seated brāhmaṇas in a dining row; one figure is shown respectfully kept aside, indicating ‘apāṅkteya’ status; the mood is corrective rather than cruel.

Characters & Entities

• Śrāddha
• Nāgara

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Ritual privileges are tied to conduct; violating dharma results in loss of eligibility for sacred communal rites.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No site is mentioned; the verse defines ritual status within the Nāgara community context.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Exclusion from śrāddha participation and from the communal dining row (pañkti).