Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 6

Devanagari script

किं करिष्यसि विप्रेण शौचाचारकृशेन तु । तपःस्वाध्यायशीलेन क्लिश्यन्तीव सुलोचने

Transliteration

kiṃ kariṣyasi vipreṇa śaucācārakṛśena tu | tapaḥsvādhyāyaśīlena kliśyantīva sulocane

Translation

«Que feras-tu d’un brāhmane amaigri par la pureté et la rigueur des observances, voué à l’ascèse et à l’étude védique ? Ô belle aux yeux, on dirait que tu souffres d’une telle vie.»

Word by Word

• kim: what
• kim: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचनम्; प्रश्नार्थक-सर्वनाम

• kariṣyasi: will you do
• kariṣyasi: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kṛ (धातु)
• Form: लृट् (Simple Future), परस्मैपदम्, मध्यमपुरुषः (2nd), एकवचनम्

• vipreṇa: with a brāhmaṇa
• vipreṇa: Sahakari (Associate/सहकारी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vipra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचनम्

• śauca-ācāra-kṛśena: thin/gaunt due to purity and strict conduct
• śauca-ācāra-kṛśena: Sahakari (Associate-qualifier/सहकारी-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śauca (प्रातिपदिक) + ācāra (प्रातिपदिक) + kṛśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, तृतीया, एकवचनम्; बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः—‘शौचेन आचारेण च कृशः’ इति अर्थे (समास-प्रयोगः)

• tu: but
• tu: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle), विरोध/अन्वय

• tapaḥ-svādhyāya-śīlena: devoted to austerity and self-study
• tapaḥ-svādhyāya-śīlena: Sahakari (Associate-qualifier/सहकारी-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tapas (प्रातिपदिक) + svādhyāya (प्रातिपदिक) + śīla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, तृतीया, एकवचनम्; तत्पुरुषः—‘तपःस्वाध्याययोः शीलम् यस्य’

• kliśyantī: suffering/being afflicted
• kliśyantī: Karta (Subject-qualifier/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kliś (धातु) → kliśyat (शतृ/वर्तमान-कृदन्त)
• Form: वर्तमानकृदन्तः (शतृ), स्त्रीलिङ्गे, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्; ‘त्वम्’ इति लुप्त-सम्बन्धे

• iva: as if
• iva: Sambandha (Comparison/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iva (अव्यय)
• Form: उपमा-वाचक-अव्यय (particle of comparison)

• su-locane: O beautiful-eyed one
• su-locane: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: su (उपसर्ग/प्रातिपदिक-पूर्वपद) + locana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्गे, सम्बोधन, एकवचनम्; कर्मधारयः—‘सुन्दर-लोचना’

Speaker

Śakra (Indra), addressing Ahalyā (contextual deduction from the episode)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā tīrtha (contextual)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Indra disparages Gautama’s austere brāhmaṇa life—lean from purity and conduct—portraying it as hardship; Ahalyā listens, the seed of doubt forming.

Characters & Entities

• Śakra (Indra)
• Ahalyā
• Vipra (Brāhmaṇa)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Worldly desire often mocks disciplined dharma—purity, austerity, and svādhyāya are portrayed as spiritually superior even when they appear ‘dry’ to the restless mind.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No single tīrtha is named in this verse; it occurs within the Revā Khaṇḍa narrative stream connected with the Narmadā (Revā) sacred geography.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit ritual is prescribed; the verse highlights the virtues of śauca (purity), tapas (austerity), and svādhyāya (Vedic study).