Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 12

Devanagari script

अवतीर्णस्ततो लोके ब्रह्मज्ञो जायते कुले । उत्तमः सर्ववर्णानां देवानामिव देवता

Transliteration

avatīrṇastato loke brahmajño jāyate kule | uttamaḥ sarvavarṇānāṃ devānāmiva devatā

Translation

Redescendu dans le monde, il naît dans une lignée en tant que connaisseur de Brahman, le meilleur parmi tous les varṇas, tel une divinité parmi les devas.

Word by Word

• avatīrṇaḥ: descended
• avatīrṇaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ava√tṝ (धातु) + kta (कृत्प्रत्यय)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• tataḥ: then/thereupon
• tataḥ: Hetu/Anantarya (sequence marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम् (adverb) — ‘thereupon/from that’

• loke: in the world
• loke: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: loka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन

• brahmajñaḥ: knower of Brahman
• brahmajñaḥ: Karta (Subject complement)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: brahman + jña (प्रातिपदिके)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; उपपद-तत्पुरुषः (brahmaṇaḥ jñaḥ = knower of Brahman)

• jāyate: is born/arises
• jāyate: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: jan (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• kule: in a family/lineage
• kule: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kula (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन

• uttamaḥ: excellent/supreme
• uttamaḥ: Karta (Predicate adjective)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: uttama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषणम्

• sarvavarṇānām: of all social classes
• sarvavarṇānām: Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarva + varṇa (प्रातिपदिके)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, बहुवचन; कर्मधारयः (sarve varṇāḥ)

• devānām: of the gods
• devānām: Upamana-sambandha (genitive with iva)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, बहुवचन

• iva: like/as
• iva: Upamana (Simile marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iva (अव्यय)
• Form: उपमान-अव्ययम् (particle of comparison)

• devatā: a deity
• devatā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: devatā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

Speaker

Śiva (deduced from adhyāya-context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Brahmatīrtha

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A soul descending from a luminous devaloka into a learned household; the newborn is shown with symbolic marks of wisdom—Veda manuscripts, a calm radiance—while elders perform jāta-karma; the tīrtha’s aura subtly appears as a river motif.

Characters & Entities

• Brahmajña
• Brahman
• Brahmatīrtha (implied)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Tīrtha merit is depicted as transforming future destiny—leading to spiritual insight (brahmajñāna) and an elevated birth.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The continuing context is Brahmatīrtha (explicitly named in the preceding verse).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct ritual is stated; it describes the karmic/spiritual outcome attributed to the tīrtha’s merit.