Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 181

Devanagari script

तत्र यद्दीयते दानमपि वालाग्रमात्रकम् । तदक्षयफलं सर्वमेवमाह महेश्वरः

Transliteration

tatra yaddīyate dānamapi vālāgramātrakam | tadakṣayaphalaṃ sarvamevamāha maheśvaraḥ

Translation

Toute aumône donnée en ce lieu—fût-elle aussi infime que la pointe d’un cheveu—devient un fruit impérissable. Ainsi parla Maheśvara (Śiva).

Word by Word

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikaraṇa (Context/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय (locative adverb: 'there/in that context')

• yat: whatever (that which)
• yat: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular); सम्बन्धक (relative pronoun)

• dīyate: is given
• dīyate: Kriyā (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dā (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), आत्मनेपद (Ātmanepada), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular); कर्मणि-प्रयोग (passive)

• dānam: a gift/charity
• dānam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dāna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular); apposition to yat

• api: even
• api: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय/अपि-निपात (particle: 'even/also')

• vālāgra-mātrakam: only as much as the tip of a hair
• vālāgra-mātrakam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vāla (प्रातिपदिक) + agra (प्रातिपदिक) + mātraka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (measure: 'hair-tip-sized'), नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular); विशेषण (adjective) dānam प्रति

• tat: that
• tat: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular); correlative pronoun

• akṣaya-phalam: imperishable fruit/result
• akṣaya-phalam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: akṣaya (प्रातिपदिक) + phala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कर्मधारय-समास (akṣayaṃ phalaṃ), नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular)

• sarvam: entire
• sarvam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular); विशेषण (adjective) akṣaya-phalam प्रति

• evam: thus
• evam: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial modifier/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: evam (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रकारवाचक-अव्यय (manner adverb: 'thus')

• āha: said
• āha: Kriyā (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ah (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), परस्मैपद (Parasmaipada), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular)

• maheśvaraḥ: Maheśvara (Śiva)
• maheśvaraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: maheśvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

Speaker

Śrī Mārkaṇḍeya (quoting Maheśvara/Śiva)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Bhārabhūtyā (Revā-khaṇḍa tirtha)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Rājā (King)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A pilgrim offers a tiny gift—just a pinch of grain or a single coin—at a riverside tirtha; above, Śiva’s presence is suggested as a luminous liṅga or subtle form, affirming the gift’s imperishable fruit.

Characters & Entities

• Maheśvara
• Śiva
• dāna
• tīrtha

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

At a sanctified tīrtha, sincerity outweighs quantity—even minimal dāna can yield inexhaustible merit.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The same Revākhaṇḍa tīrtha on the Narmadā, where charity is declared akṣaya in result.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Dāna (charitable giving) at the tīrtha, emphasizing that even the smallest offering is spiritually efficacious.