Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 48

Devanagari script

ब्राह्मणान्भोजयेद्यस्तु भक्त्या तस्मिन्नवैर्यवैः । यवसंख्याप्रमाणानि युगानि दिवि मोदते

Transliteration

brāhmaṇānbhojayedyastu bhaktyā tasminnavairyavaiḥ | yavasaṃkhyāpramāṇāni yugāni divi modate

Translation

Whoever, with devotion, feeds Brāhmaṇas there with fresh barley rejoices in heaven for yugas equal in number to the grains of barley offered.

Word by Word

• ब्राह्मणान्: Brahmins
• ब्राह्मणान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्राह्मण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, बहुवचन

• भोजयेत्: should feed
• भोजयेत्: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भुज् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative/सम्भावना-आज्ञार्थ), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद; णिच् (causative) = 'should cause to eat/feed'

• यः: who
• यः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• तु: indeed
• तु: Sambandha (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (निपात/अवधारण-व्यतिरेक) = 'indeed/but'

• भक्त्या: with devotion
• भक्त्या: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भक्ति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन

• तस्मिन्: on that (occasion)
• तस्मिन्: Adhikarana (Temporal/कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक, सप्तमी, एकवचन; निर्देश (तस्मिन् काले/दिने)

• नवैः: with fresh/new
• नवैः: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, बहुवचन; विशेषण (यवैः सह)

• यवैः: barley grains
• यवैः: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, बहुवचन

• यवसंख्याप्रमाणानि: measured by the count of barley grains
• यवसंख्याप्रमाणानि: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: यव + संख्या + प्रमाण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; बहुपद-तत्पुरुष: यवानां संख्यया प्रमाणानि (measured by the number of barley grains)

• युगानि: yugas (ages)
• युगानि: Karma (Extent/कर्म-परिमाण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: युग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, बहुवचन (कालपरिमाण)

• दिवि: in heaven
• दिवि: Adhikarana (Location/देशाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दिव् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन (वैकल्पिकं: द्युलोक-स्थानवाचक)

• मोदते: rejoices
• मोदते: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: मुद् (धातु)
• Form: लट्, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) prescribing dāna and hospitality (deduced)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Arbuda-kṣetra (Acaleśa/Sumaheśvara vicinity)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Mahārāja (king)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A shaded courtyard near the shrine: seated brāhmaṇas are served barley-based dishes with reverence; the donor offers water for ācamana and dakṣiṇā, while temple flags flutter in the background.

Characters & Entities

• Brāhmaṇas
• Yava (barley)
• Heaven (Divi)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Devotional charity—especially feeding the learned—multiplies merit immensely when performed in a sanctified context.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The ‘there’ refers to the Arbuda-kṣetra context of Acaleśa worship described in this chapter.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Feed Brāhmaṇas with fresh barley preparations as an act of devotion and charity.