Skanda Purana — Vishnu Khanda, Shloka 177

Devanagari script

जन्मान्तरशतैर्विप्र योगोऽयं यदि लभ्यते । मुक्तिर्भवति तत्त्वेकजन्मना लभ्यते न वा

Transliteration

janmāntaraśatairvipra yogo'yaṃ yadi labhyate | muktirbhavati tattvekajanmanā labhyate na vā

Translation

O Brahmane, wenn diese yogische Errungenschaft erst nach Hunderten von Geburten erlangt wird, dann tritt Befreiung gewiss ein. Doch wird der eine wahre Zustand in nur einem Leben erreicht — oder nicht?

Word by Word

• janma-antara-śataiḥ: by hundreds of other births
• janma-antara-śataiḥ: Karaṇa (Instrument/Measure)
• Type: Noun
• Root: janman (प्रातिपदिक) + antara (प्रातिपदिक) + śata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (करण), बहुवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (janmāntarāṇāṃ śataiḥ = by hundreds of other births)

• vipra: O brāhmaṇa
• vipra: Sambodhana (Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vipra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (vocative/आमन्त्रण), एकवचन

• yogaḥ: yoga
• yogaḥ: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yoga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (कर्ता), एकवचन

• ayam: this
• ayam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषण (yogaḥ)

• yadi: if
• yadi: Sambandha (Condition)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yadi (अव्यय)
• Form: शर्तार्थक-अव्यय (conditional particle)

• labhyate: is obtained
• labhyate: Kriyā (Predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √labh (धातु); labhyate
• Form: लट् (वर्तमान), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद, कर्मणि-प्रयोग (passive)

• muktiḥ: liberation
• muktiḥ: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mukti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (कर्ता), एकवचन

• bhavati: arises/comes to be
• bhavati: Kriyā (Main action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √bhū (धातु); bhavati
• Form: लट् (वर्तमान), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• tattva-eka-janmanā: by one (true) birth alone
• tattva-eka-janmanā: Karaṇa (Instrument/Measure)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tattva (प्रातिपदिक) + eka (प्रातिपदिक) + janman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (करण), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (tattvasya ekajanmanā / tattve ekajanmanā—sense: in one true/real birth)

• labhyate: is obtained
• labhyate: Kriyā (Predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √labh (धातु); labhyate
• Form: लट् (वर्तमान), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद, कर्मणि (passive)

• na: not
• na: Pratiṣedha (Negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्यय (negation)

• vā: or
• vā: Sambandha (Alternative)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vā (अव्यय)
• Form: विकल्पार्थक-अव्यय (or)

Speaker

Brahmā (deduced, Vaiṣṇavakhaṇḍa narrative attribution)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Gopratāra (contextual)

Type: ghat

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: vipra (brāhmaṇa)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A learned brāhmaṇa is addressed in a reflective exchange; the setting suggests a riverside or assembly in Ayodhyā where the speaker raises a pointed question about liberation across births versus one-birth attainment.

Characters & Entities

• Vipra (brāhmaṇa addressee)
• Yoga
• Mukti
• Tattva

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

It raises the soteriological question of whether liberation can be won swiftly (even in one life), preparing the claim of Gopratāra’s extraordinary efficacy.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The discussion is in the immediate context of Gopratāra Tīrtha on the Sarayū at Ayodhyā.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None directly; the verse is doctrinal, contrasting long spiritual effort with the possibility of rapid liberation.