Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 116

Devanagari script

पिण्डनिर्वपणे वापि जपेदेनं समाहितः । पितरः क्षिप्रमायान्ति राक्षसाः प्रद्रवन्ति च

Transliteration

piṇḍanirvapaṇe vāpi japedenaṃ samāhitaḥ | pitaraḥ kṣipramāyānti rākṣasāḥ pradravanti ca

Translation

Oder beim Darbringen der Piṇḍas soll man es mit gesammeltem Geist rezitieren. Die Pitṛs kommen rasch herbei, und die Rākṣasas fliehen davon.

Word by Word

• पिण्डनिर्वपणे: at the offering of piṇḍas (funeral balls)
• पिण्डनिर्वपणे: Adhikarana (Location/occasion)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पिण्ड + निर्वपण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन

• वा: or
• वा: Sambandha (Alternative)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; विकल्पार्थक (disjunctive particle)

• अपि: also/even
• अपि: Sambandha (Additive)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय/अपि-कार (also/even)

• जपेत्: should recite
• जपेत्: Kriya (Predicate action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: जप् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• एनम्: this (him/it)
• एनम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक; एनद्-आदेश)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; (मन्त्रं) इत्यस्य निर्देशः

• समाहितः: collected/attentive
• समाहितः: Karta (Agent/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सम् + आ + धा (धातु) → समाहित (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; भूतकृदन्त (past participle), कर्तरि प्रयोगः

• पितरः: the ancestors
• पितरः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

• क्षिप्रम्: quickly
• क्षिप्रम्: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: क्षिप्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रियाविशेषण (adverb)

• आयान्ति: come/arrive
• आयान्ति: Kriya (Predicate action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: या (धातु) + आ (उपसर्ग)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन; परस्मैपद

• राक्षसाः: demons
• राक्षसाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: राक्षस (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

• प्रद्रवन्ति: run away/flee
• प्रद्रवन्ति: Kriya (Predicate action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: द्रु (धातु) + प्र (उपसर्ग)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन; परस्मैपद

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Coordinator)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयबोधक (conjunction)

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) speaking to the sages (deduced)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Ritual-performing pilgrims/householders seeking śrāddha success

Visual Art Cues

Scene: At the moment of placing piṇḍas, the performer chants; radiant ancestral figures approach, while shadowy rakṣasas recoil and scatter at the edge of the ritual space, stopped by an unseen mantra-barrier.

Characters & Entities

• Pitṛs
• Rākṣasas

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Concentration and correct mantra-use are said to make ancestral offerings effective and remove negative interferences.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa-kṣetra, as the ritual setting where piṇḍa offerings and mantra efficacy are praised.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Chant the mantra during piṇḍa-nirvapaṇa with a composed mind; it invites Pitṛs and repels rākṣasas.