Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 19

Devanagari script

पितृलोकं महाराज दुर्लभं त्रिदशैरपि । तान्दृष्ट्वा प्रस्थितान्राजन्पितरो मर्त्यसंभवाः

Transliteration

pitṛlokaṃ mahārāja durlabhaṃ tridaśairapi | tāndṛṣṭvā prasthitānrājanpitaro martyasaṃbhavāḥ

Translation

O großer König, Pitṛloka ist selbst für die Götter schwer zu erlangen. Als sie sie aufbrechen sahen, wandten die Pitṛs, die als Sterbliche geboren waren, bewegt ihre Aufmerksamkeit ihnen zu.

Word by Word

• पितृलोकम्: the world of the Pitṛs
• पितृलोकम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ + लोक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (पितॄणां लोकः), पुल्लिङ्ग, द्वितीया (Accusative), एकवचन

• महाराज: O great king
• महाराज: Sambodhana (Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महा + राजन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कर्मधारय-समास, पुल्लिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, एकवचन

• दुर्लभम्: hard to obtain
• दुर्लभम्: Visheshana (to पितृलोकम्)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दुर्लभ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण (to पितृलोकम्)

• त्रिदशैः: by the gods
• त्रिदशैः: Kartr/Agent (in sense ‘even by’)
• Type: Noun
• Root: त्रिदश (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, तृतीया (Instrumental), बहुवचन

• अपि: even
• अपि: Sambandha (Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (particle), अप्यर्थ (even/also)

• तान्: them
• तान्: Karma (Object of दृष्ट्वा)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, द्वितीया (Accusative), बहुवचन

• दृष्ट्वा: having seen
• दृष्ट्वा: Purvakala-kriya (Prior action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √दृश् (धातु) + त्वा (क्त्वान्त)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund/absolutive), पूर्वकाल (having done)

• प्रस्थितान्: departed
• प्रस्थितान्: Visheshana (to तान्)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्रस्थित (कृदन्त; प्र-√स्था (धातु) + क्त)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त, पुल्लिङ्ग, द्वितीया, बहुवचन; विशेषण (to तान्)

• राजन्: O king
• राजन्: Sambodhana (Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: राजन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative), एकवचन

• पितरः: the Pitṛs
• पितरः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• मर्त्यसंभवाः: born among mortals
• मर्त्यसंभवाः: Visheshana (to पितरः)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मर्त्य + संभव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (मर्त्येभ्यः/मर्त्येषु संभवः), पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषण (to पितरः)

Speaker

Unspecified narrator (Purāṇic dialogue context; likely a sage/narrator addressing a king)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Mahārāja (king)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A king listens as the narrator describes the rare Pitṛloka; departing figures are seen moving toward a luminous path while ancestral beings, once mortal, turn their gaze toward the ritualists below.

Characters & Entities

• Pitṛloka
• Pitṛs
• Devas (Tridaśas)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Pitṛloka is portrayed as an exalted realm; therefore, honoring ancestors and following dharma are weighty spiritual responsibilities.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific tīrtha is named in this verse; it speaks about Pitṛloka as a sacred destination in Purāṇic cosmology.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None directly; the verse supports the broader śrāddha framework by emphasizing the rarity and sanctity of the ancestral realm.