Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 13

Devanagari script

तथा तु वचनं तेषां ब्रुवतां स तपोधनः । न किंचिद्वचनं राजन्नवदत्साध्वसाधु वा

Transliteration

tathā tu vacanaṃ teṣāṃ bruvatāṃ sa tapodhanaḥ | na kiṃcidvacanaṃ rājannavadatsādhvasādhu vā

Translation

Bien qu’ils lui parlâssent ainsi, ce tapodhana, le sage dont la richesse était l’austérité, ne dit pas un seul mot, ô Roi, ni «bien» ni «mal».

Word by Word

• तथा: thus
• तथा: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (manner)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रकारवाचक अव्यय (thus/in that manner)

• तु: but
• तु: Sambandha (contrast)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: विरोध/अन्वयबोधक निपात (but/indeed)

• वचनम्: a word/statement
• वचनम्: Karman (object; thing not spoken)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वचन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• तेषाम्: of them
• तेषाम्: Ṣaṣṭhī-sambandha (genitive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), बहुवचन

• ब्रुवताम्: of those speaking/while they spoke
• ब्रुवताम्: Kālādhi karaṇa (concomitant action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √ब्रू (धातु)
• Form: वर्तमानकृदन्त (शतृ) ‘ब्रुवत्’ का षष्ठी बहुवचन (genitive plural) / or सप्तमी-सम्बन्धे; ‘while they were speaking’

• सः: he
• सः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• तपोधनः: the ascetic (wealth of austerity)
• तपोधनः: Karta (apposition to ‘सः’)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तपस् + धन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; समास: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष

• न: not
• न: Pratiṣedha (negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक निपात (negation)

• किञ्चित्: anything
• किञ्चित्: Karman (object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: किम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; अनिश्चित/अल्पार्थ (indefinite ‘anything’)

• वचनम्: word
• वचनम्: Karman (object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वचन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; ‘किञ्चित्’ के विशेष्य

• राजन्: O king
• राजन्: Sambodhana (address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: राजन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative), एकवचन

• अवदत्: said/spoke
• अवदत्: Kriyā (main verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √वद् (धातु)
• Form: लङ् (अनद्यतनभूत/Imperfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• साधु: good/right
• साधु: Karman (content of speech; ‘good’)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: साधु (अव्यय/विशेषण)
• Form: प्रशंसावाचक अव्यय (approving particle)

• असाधु: bad/wrong
• असाधु: Karman (content of speech; ‘not good’)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: असाधु (अव्यय/विशेषण)
• Form: निन्दावाचक अव्यय (disapproving particle)

• वा: or
• वा: Sambandha (disjunction)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वा (अव्यय)
• Form: विकल्पार्थक निपात (or)

Speaker

Deductive: Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) narrating; addressing a king in the frame

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā-kṣetra (contextual)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: A king (explicitly addressed)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: The sage sits unmoving, lips closed, eyes serene; guards speak animatedly but receive no reply; the contrast between agitation and stillness dominates.

Characters & Entities

• tapodhana (sage)
• rājan (king/listener)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

A vow, once undertaken, is held as sacred; yet the narrative invites reflection on how vows interact with compassion and social duty.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Revā Khaṇḍa’s holy terrain remains the context; the āśrama is depicted as a seat of strict vrata-practice.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Implicitly, steadfast observance of mauna-vrata (silence), even under questioning.