Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 2

Devanagari script

युधिष्ठिर उवाच । कथं तात सुराः सर्वे दानवैर्बलवत्तरैः । निर्जितास्तत्र तीर्थे च स्नात्वा सिद्धिं परां गताः

Transliteration

yudhiṣṭhira uvāca | kathaṃ tāta surāḥ sarve dānavairbalavattaraiḥ | nirjitāstatra tīrthe ca snātvā siddhiṃ parāṃ gatāḥ

Translation

Yudhiṣṭhira dit : « Comment, vénérable seigneur, tous les dieux furent-ils vaincus par les Dānavas plus puissants, et pourtant, en se baignant dans ce même tīrtha, atteignirent-ils la perfection suprême ? »

Word by Word

• युधिष्ठिरः: Yudhiṣṭhira
• युधिष्ठिरः: कर्ता (Speaker/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: युधिष्ठिर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन

• उवाच: said
• उवाच: क्रिया (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √वच् (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन

• कथम्: how
• कथम्: प्रश्न/क्रियाविशेषण (Interrogative)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: कथम् (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रश्नाव्यय (interrogative adverb)

• तात: O dear one/father
• तात: सम्बोधन (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तात (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/सम्बोधन), एकवचन; स्नेहसम्बोधन (term of address)

• सुराः: gods
• सुराः: कर्ता (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सुर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचन

• सर्वे: all
• सर्वे: कर्ता-विशेषण (Subject-qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचन; विशेषण (qualifying ‘सुराः’)

• दानवैः: by the Dānavas
• दानवैः: कर्ता (Agent in passive/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दानव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), बहुवचन

• बलवत्तरैः: stronger/more powerful
• बलवत्तरैः: कर्ता-विशेषण (Agent-qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: बलवत् (प्रातिपदिक) (तुलनात्मक: बलवत्तर)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), बहुवचन; विशेषण (qualifying ‘दानवैः’)

• निर्जिताः: defeated
• निर्जिताः: क्रिया-विशेष्य (Predicate participle)
• Type: Verb
• Root: निर् + √जि (धातु) + क्त (कृत्-प्रत्यय)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle/क्त), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचन; कर्मणि प्रयोग (passive)

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: अधिकरण/क्रियाविशेषण (Adverbial locative)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक अव्यय (locative adverb)

• तीर्थे: at the tīrtha
• तीर्थे: अधिकरण (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन

• च: and
• च: सम्बन्ध/समुच्चय (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय (conjunction)

• स्नात्वा: having bathed
• स्नात्वा: पूर्वक्रिया (Prior action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √स्ना (धातु) + त्वा (क्त्वा-प्रत्यय)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund), पूर्वकाल

• सिद्धिम्: attainment
• सिद्धिम्: कर्म (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सिद्धि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन

• पराम्: supreme
• पराम्: कर्मविशेषण (Object-qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: परा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; विशेषण (qualifying ‘सिद्धिम्’)

• गताः: went/attained
• गताः: क्रिया-विशेष्य (Predicate participle)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √गम् (धातु) + क्त (कृत्-प्रत्यय)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past participle/क्त), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचन; कर्तरि प्रयोग (as predicate of ‘सुराः’)

Speaker

Yudhiṣṭhira

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Devatīrtha

Type: tirtha

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Mārkaṇḍeya

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A royal figure (Yudhiṣṭhira) respectfully questions the sage; behind them, a faint vision of gods routed by Dānavas, then the same gods bathing at a luminous ford—two scenes contrasted.

Characters & Entities

• Yudhiṣṭhira
• Surāḥ (gods)
• Dānavāḥ
• Tīrtha (Devatīrtha context)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Worldly defeat does not block spiritual ascent; tīrtha and tapas can restore divine strength and inner perfection.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The question refers back to Devatīrtha in the Revā Khaṇḍa narrative.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Bathing (snāna) at the tīrtha is presented as the decisive act linked to ‘parā siddhi’.