Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 29

Devanagari script

हूयंतामग्निहोत्राणि देवताः सर्वदा द्विजाः । इज्यंतां विविधैर्यागैः क्रियतां पितृपूजनम्

Transliteration

hūyaṃtāmagnihotrāṇi devatāḥ sarvadā dvijāḥ | ijyaṃtāṃ vividhairyāgaiḥ kriyatāṃ pitṛpūjanam

Translation

O Zweifachgeborene, lasst die Agnihotra-Opfer vollzogen werden und die Gottheiten stets verehrt. Lasst vielfältige Yajñas darbringen und die Ahnen gebührend ehren.

Word by Word

• हूयन्ताम्: let (them) be offered
• हूयन्ताम्: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: हु (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (Imperative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन; कर्मणि प्रयोग (passive imperative)

• अग्निहोत्राणि: Agnihotra rites/offerings
• अग्निहोत्राणि: Karta (Subject in passive/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अग्निहोत्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; कर्मणि वाक्ये कर्तृवत् (subject of passive)

• देवताः: deities
• देवताः: Sambandha (Relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देवता (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; (अर्थतः) देवतापूजनविषयाः

• सर्वदा: always
• सर्वदा: Sambandha (Relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सर्वदा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (temporal adverb)

• द्विजाः: O twice-born (brāhmaṇas)
• द्विजाः: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्विज (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; संबोधनार्थेऽपि

• इज्यन्ताम्: let (them) be worshipped
• इज्यन्ताम्: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: यज् (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (Imperative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन; कर्मणि प्रयोग (passive imperative)

• विविधैः: by various
• विविधैः: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: विविध (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), बहुवचन; विशेषण (यागैः)

• यागैः: sacrifices/rites
• यागैः: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: याग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), बहुवचन

• क्रियताम्: let it be done
• क्रियताम्: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (Imperative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; कर्मणि प्रयोग (passive imperative)

• पितृपूजनम्: worship of the ancestors
• पितृपूजनम्: Karta (Subject in passive/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ-पूजन (प्रातिपदिक; पितृ + पूजन)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; कर्मणि वाक्ये कर्तृवत्

Speaker

Īśvara (Śiva) (deduced from context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Dvijāḥ / brāhmaṇas addressed directly

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Brāhmaṇas tending sacred fires at dawn, offering oblations; nearby, a shrine with lamps and flowers; a separate rite of pitṛ-pūjā with water offerings and kuśa grass, all within the sacred city.

Characters & Entities

• Agnihotra
• Devatās
• Pitṛs (ancestors)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sustained dharma—fire-rites, deity worship, and honoring ancestors—purifies life and anchors spiritual progress.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa-kṣetra, portrayed as a place where Vedic and ancestral rites flourish and bear merit.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Agnihotra, regular devatā-pūjā, varied yajñas, and pitṛ-pūjana (ancestral honoring).