Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 35

Devanagari script

शबर उवाच । धर्मार्थकाममोक्षाणां देहः परमसाधनम् । कथं त्यजसि तं देहं सुखार्थं नवयौवनम्

Transliteration

śabara uvāca | dharmārthakāmamokṣāṇāṃ dehaḥ paramasādhanam | kathaṃ tyajasi taṃ dehaṃ sukhārthaṃ navayauvanam

Translation

Śabara said: “The body is the supreme instrument for dharma, prosperity, desire, and liberation. How can you abandon that body—young and fit for happiness—merely for the sake of comfort?”

Word by Word

• śabaraḥ: Śabara
• śabaraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śabara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriyā (Main action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन, परस्मैपदम्

• dharma-artha-kāma-mokṣāṇām: of dharma, wealth, desire, and liberation
• dharma-artha-kāma-mokṣāṇām: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dharma (प्रातिपदिक) + artha (प्रातिपदिक) + kāma (प्रातिपदिक) + mokṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), बहुवचन; समासः—द्वन्द्व (समाहार/इतरेतर), ‘of dharma, artha, kāma, and mokṣa’

• dehaḥ: body
• dehaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• parama-sādhanam: the supreme means/instrument
• parama-sādhanam: Pradhāna-predicative (Predicate nominative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: parama (प्रातिपदिक) + sādhana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारय (परमं साधनम्)

• katham: how
• katham: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: katham (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रश्नाव्यय (interrogative adverb)

• tyajasi: you abandon
• tyajasi: Kriyā (Main action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: tyaj (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), मध्यमपुरुष (2nd person), एकवचन, परस्मैपदम्

• tam: that
• tam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• deham: body
• deham: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• sukha-artham: for happiness
• sukha-artham: Prayojana (Purpose/प्रयोजन)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sukha (प्रातिपदिक) + artha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययीभाव-समास; अव्ययवत् प्रयोगः (for the sake of happiness)

• nava-yauvanam: fresh youth
• nava-yauvanam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nava (प्रातिपदिक) + yauvana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारय (नवं यौवनम्)

Speaker

Śabara

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A concerned Śabara elder addresses the woman devotee near a hut and ritual fire, gesturing toward her youthful form as he argues for preserving the body for dharma and liberation.

Characters & Entities

• Śabara

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Devotion must be aligned with dharma: the human body is a sacred means for spiritual practice and should not be discarded impulsively.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No site is mentioned; the verse teaches dharmic discernment within a devotional story.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct ritual is prescribed; it frames the body as essential for fulfilling puruṣārthas and sustaining worship.