Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 23

Devanagari script

कार्पासं याम्यभागं तु नवनीतं तु नैरृते । पश्चिमे सप्तधान्यानि वायव्ये तंदुलाः स्मृताः

Transliteration

kārpāsaṃ yāmyabhāgaṃ tu navanītaṃ tu nairṛte | paścime saptadhānyāni vāyavye taṃdulāḥ smṛtāḥ

Translation

En el cuadrante del sur debe colocarse algodón; en el suroeste, mantequilla fresca. En el oeste han de disponerse los siete granos, y en el noroeste se prescribe el arroz.

Word by Word

• kārpāsam: cotton
• kārpāsam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kārpāsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (कर्म), एकवचन; accusative singular neuter

• yāmya-bhāgam: the southern quarter/portion
• yāmya-bhāgam: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yāmya (प्रातिपदिक) + bhāga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (दिशा-विशेषणपूर्वकः)

• tu: indeed/but
• tu: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधान/विरोधार्थक-निपात (particle: but/indeed)

• navanītam: fresh butter
• navanītam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: navanīta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; accusative singular neuter

• tu: indeed/but
• tu: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात (particle)

• nairṛte: in the south-west (Nairṛta quarter)
• nairṛte: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nairṛta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्ग (दिशानाम), सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; locative singular (in the south-west)

• paścime: in the west
• paścime: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: paścima (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्ग (दिशानाम), सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; locative singular (in the west)

• sapta-dhānyāni: seven grains (seven kinds of grain)
• sapta-dhānyāni: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sapta (संख्या/प्रातिपदिक) + dhānya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; द्विगु-समास (सप्तसंख्यकानि धान्यानि)

• vāyavye: in the north-west (Vāyavya quarter)
• vāyavye: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vāyavya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्ग (दिशानाम), सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; locative singular (in the north-west)

• taṃḍulāḥ: rice grains
• taṃḍulāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: taṃḍula (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; nominative plural masculine

• smṛtāḥ: are said/are prescribed
• smṛtāḥ: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: smṛ (धातु) + kta (कृत् प्रत्यय)
• Form: कृदन्त (क्त-प्रत्ययान्त), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; past passive participle used predicatively (are said/are remembered)

Speaker

Deductive: a Purāṇic narrator continuing the directional arrangement for mahiṣī-dāna.

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā (Narmadā) tīrthas

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A brāhmaṇa sits facing east near a riverbank altar; the donor places cotton in the south, butter in the southwest, seven grains in the west, and rice in the northwest—each in small bowls marked by directional symbols.

Characters & Entities

• Cotton (kārpāsa)
• Butter (navanīta)
• Seven grains (sapta-dhānya)
• Rice (taṃdula)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Ritual charity is made holistic by offering staples and livelihood-symbols in a cosmically ordered layout, aligning the giver with dharma.

Which specific holy site (Tīrtha) is glorified here?

No tīrtha is singled out in this verse; it is part of Revā-khaṇḍa’s dāna-vidhi.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Place cotton in the south, butter in the southwest, seven grains in the west, and rice in the northwest as part of the donation arrangement.