Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 67

Devanagari script

यस्याः स्वादनतो लोकः कामात्मा समपद्यत । न कश्चिद्यजनं चक्रे याजनं च विशेषतः । अन्या धर्मक्रियाः सर्वाः प्रणष्टा धर्मसंभवाः

Transliteration

yasyāḥ svādanato lokaḥ kāmātmā samapadyata | na kaścidyajanaṃ cakre yājanaṃ ca viśeṣataḥ | anyā dharmakriyāḥ sarvāḥ praṇaṣṭā dharmasaṃbhavāḥ

Translation

By tasting it, people came under the rule of desire. None performed yajña, nor did anyone arrange for sacrifices to be offered; and all other dharmic observances, born of righteousness, were brought to ruin.

Word by Word

• yasyāḥ: of whom/whose (f.)
• yasyāḥ: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (Genitive/6th), एकवचन; सर्वनाम (pronoun)

• svādanataḥ: from tasting; due to enjoyment
• svādanataḥ: Apādāna (Source/Cause/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: svādana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी-विभक्ति (Ablative/5th), एकवचन; हेतौ/कारणे (cause)

• lokaḥ: the world/people
• lokaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: loka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन

• kāmātmā: lust-minded; one whose nature is desire
• kāmātmā: Karta-samānādhikaraṇa (Predicate nominative/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāma + ātman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (कामा-आत्मा = कामः आत्मा यस्य)

• samapadyata: became; came to be
• samapadyata: Kriyā (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-√pad (धातु)
• Form: लङ्-लकार (Imperfect/Past), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (Negation marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-अव्यय (negation particle)

• kaścit: anyone
• kaścit: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kaścid (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; अनिश्चित-सर्वनाम (indefinite pronoun)

• yajanam: sacrifice; worship (act of yajña)
• yajanam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yajana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन

• cakre: did; performed
• cakre: Kriyā (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kṛ (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद

• yājanam: causing/performing sacrifice (as priestly act)
• yājanam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yājana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• viśeṣataḥ: especially; in particular
• viśeṣataḥ: Kriyā-viśeṣaṇa (Adverbial modifier)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: viśeṣatas (अव्यय)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषण-अव्यय (adverb)

• anyāḥ: other
• anyāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjective)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: anya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषण

• dharmakriyāḥ: religious rites
• dharmakriyāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dharma + kriyā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (धर्मस्य क्रियाः)

• sarvāḥ: all
• sarvāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjective)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषण

• praṇaṣṭāḥ: destroyed; lost
• praṇaṣṭāḥ: Karta-samānādhikaraṇa (Predicate adjective)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pra-√naś (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past passive participle), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषण

• dharmasaṃbhavāḥ: arising from dharma; dharma-born
• dharmasaṃbhavāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjective)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dharma + saṃbhava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (धर्मात् सम्भवाः)

Speaker

Narrator

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Pārthiva (king)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A desolate sacrificial ground: cold altars, extinguished fires, neglected vedi; townspeople absorbed in pleasure while dharma-symbols (yajña implements, śraddhā vessels) lie unused.

Characters & Entities

• tāmbūla/nāgavallī
• yajña

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

When society becomes kāma-driven, yajña and dharma-kriyā decline, weakening the sacred order that sustains both humans and gods.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Not a site-focused verse; it provides the moral crisis within the broader Tīrthamāhātmya narrative.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

It references yajña (yajana) and sponsoring priests/rites (yājana) as neglected duties, implying their importance.