Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 86

Devanagari script

यावत्त्रस्तमृगीदृष्टिं चपलां न विलोकयेत् । तावन्माता पिता तावद्धाता तावत्ससुहृज्जनः

Transliteration

yāvattrastamṛgīdṛṣṭiṃ capalāṃ na vilokayet | tāvanmātā pitā tāvaddhātā tāvatsasuhṛjjanaḥ

Translation

So long as one does not fix one’s gaze upon the restless, deer-like glance that unsettles the mind, so long do mother and father remain true protectors; so long does the Creator (Providence) stand in support; and so long do sincere friends and well-wishers remain steadfast.

Word by Word

• yāvat: as long as / so much as
• yāvat: Sambandha (Correlative/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: yāvat (प्रातिपदिक/सर्वनाम-विशेषण)
• Form: अव्ययवत्-प्रयोगः; नपुंसकलिङ्गे प्रथमा/द्वितीया एकवचनरूपम् (correlative adjective: 'as long as/so much as')

• trasta-mṛgī-dṛṣṭim: the frightened-doe-like gaze
• trasta-mṛgī-dṛṣṭim: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: trasta (कृदन्त/भूतकृदन्त-विशेषण) + mṛgī (प्रातिपदिक) + dṛṣṭi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (trasta-mṛgī-iva dṛṣṭiḥ → 'a gaze like that of a frightened doe')

• capalām: restless, fickle
• capalām: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: capala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (dṛṣṭim)

• na: not
• na: Pratiṣedha (Negation/निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (निपात/अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-निपातः (negation particle)

• vilokayet: should look at / may behold
• vilokayet: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi√lok (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (imperative/आज्ञार्थ), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; विधिलिङ्गार्थेऽपि सम्भवः (injunctive sense)

• tāvat: so long / that long
• tāvat: Sambandha (Correlative/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tāvat (प्रातिपदिक/सर्वनाम-विशेषण)
• Form: अव्ययवत्-प्रयोगः; नपुंसकलिङ्गे प्रथमा एकवचनरूपम् (correlative: 'so long/so much')

• mātā: mother
• mātā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mātṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन

• pitā: father
• pitā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pitṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• tāvat: so long
• tāvat: Sambandha (Correlative/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tāvat (प्रातिपदिक/सर्वनाम-विशेषण)
• Form: अव्ययवत्-प्रयोगः; नपुंसकलिङ्गे प्रथमा एकवचनरूपम्

• dhātā: the creator / sustainer
• dhātā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dhātṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; 'धाता' = विधाता/creator, supporter

• tāvat: so long
• tāvat: Sambandha (Correlative/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tāvat (प्रातिपदिक/सर्वनाम-विशेषण)
• Form: अव्ययवत्-प्रयोगः; नपुंसकलिङ्गे प्रथमा एकवचनरूपम्

• sa-suhṛt-janaḥ: (one’s) friends and people (well-wishers)
• sa-suhṛt-janaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sa (उपसर्ग/सह-प्रयोग) + suhṛt (प्रातिपदिक) + jana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारयः/सह-पूर्वपदसमासः (suhṛt-janaḥ = 'friendly people'; sa- = 'with/along with' emphatic)

Speaker

Narrator (contextual; speaker not explicit in this verse)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Dharmāraṇyaka

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A contemplative moral tableau: a restrained ascetic/householder averts his eyes from a fleeting deer-like glance; behind him stand symbolic figures—mother, father, a radiant ‘Dhātā’ (Providence), and loyal friends—forming a protective circle.

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sense-restraint protects one’s life, reputation, and support-system; uncontrolled fascination destabilizes dharma.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No single tīrtha is named in this verse; it forms part of Dharmāraṇya’s broader dharma-instruction context.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit ritual is prescribed; the instruction is ethical—guarding the eyes and mind.