Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 88

Devanagari script

अनाशके मृतानां तु तत्र तीर्थे नराधिप । अनिवर्तिका गतिर्नृणां नात्र कार्या विचारणा

Transliteration

anāśake mṛtānāṃ tu tatra tīrthe narādhipa | anivartikā gatirnṛṇāṃ nātra kāryā vicāraṇā

Translation

Ô seigneur des hommes, pour ceux qui meurent en ce tīrtha durant le jeûne (sans nourriture), la voie obtenue est irrévocable ; ici, nul besoin de doute ni de réflexion.

Word by Word

• अनाशके: in/at Anāśaka
• अनाशके: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अनाशक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (अधिकरण), एकवचन; Locative singular; (place/condition named Anāśaka)

• मृतानाम्: of the dead
• मृतानाम्: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मृत (कृदन्त; √मृ धातु)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; Genitive plural

• तु: indeed
• तु: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; विशेषार्थक/विरोधार्थक (particle)

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; स्थानवाचक (locative adverb)

• तीर्थे: at the sacred ford/place
• तीर्थे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (अधिकरण), एकवचन; Locative singular

• नराधिप: O king (lord of men)
• नराधिप: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नर-अधिप (प्रातिपदिक; नर + अधिप)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन-विभक्ति, एकवचन; Vocative singular (address)

• अनिवर्तिका: non-returning, irreversible
• अनिवर्तिका: Visheshana (Adjectival modifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अनिवर्तिक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; Nominative singular; adjective qualifying गतिः

• गतिः: course, destiny, state
• गतिः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (कर्ता/विषय), एकवचन; Nominative singular

• नृणाम्: of men
• नृणाम्: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; Genitive plural

• न: not
• न: Sambandha (Negation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निषेध (negation particle)

• अत्र: here
• अत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; स्थानवाचक (here)

• कार्या: to be done, necessary
• कार्या: Prayojya-bhava (Predicate/विधेय)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कार्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; Nominative singular; predicate adjective with (अस्ति) implied; agreeing with विचारणा

• विचारणा: consideration, deliberation
• विचारणा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विचारणा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; Nominative singular; subject of implied (अस्ति)

Speaker

Śaṅkara (Śiva)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā-tīrtha (contextual)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Narādhipa / Bhārata (king addressed)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A fasting pilgrim at a riverbank tīrtha, serene and emaciated yet radiant, surrounded by lamps and priests; at the moment of passing, a luminous upward path opens, symbolizing ‘anivartinī gati’.

Characters & Entities

• tīrtha
• narādhipa (king)
• fasting (anāśaka)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The Purāṇa extols the tīrtha as so sanctifying that death there—especially in austerity (fasting)—is said to grant an irreversible spiritual attainment.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

A tīrtha within the Revā Khaṇḍa’s Narmadā sacred geography; the text praises its exceptional salvific power.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Anāśaka/upavāsa (fasting, not eating) in connection with the tīrtha is highlighted as spiritually potent.