Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 37

Devanagari script

अत्र तीर्थे तु यः स्नात्वा तर्पयेत्पितृदेवताः । अनिवर्तिका गतिस्तस्य जायते नात्र संशयः

Transliteration

atra tīrthe tu yaḥ snātvā tarpayetpitṛdevatāḥ | anivartikā gatistasya jāyate nātra saṃśayaḥ

Translation

En ce tīrtha, quiconque se baigne puis offre le tarpaṇa aux Pitṛs et aux divinités obtient une destinée irrévocable ; il n’y a là aucun doute.

Word by Word

• अत्र: here
• अत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक-अव्यय (locative adverb)

• तीर्थे: in the sacred ford/place of pilgrimage
• तीर्थे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/7th); एकवचन

• तु: indeed/but
• तु: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात (particle; emphasis/contrast)

• यः: who
• यः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st); एकवचन; सम्बन्धबोधक-यः (relative pronoun)

• स्नात्वा: having bathed
• स्नात्वा: Kriya (Subordinate action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्ना (धातु) + त्वा (क्त्वा-प्रत्यय)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund/absolutive); पूर्वकालिक-क्रिया (having bathed)

• तर्पयेत्: should satisfy/offer (libations to)
• तर्पयेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: तृप् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative); प्रथमपुरुष (3rd); एकवचन; परस्मैपद; causative sense in usage: तर्पयति (to satisfy/offer libation)

• पितृदेवताः: the ancestral deities (pitṛ-deities)
• पितृदेवताः: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ + देवता (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd); बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (पितॄणां देवताः = ancestral deities)

• अनिवर्तिका: non-returning/irreversible
• अनिवर्तिका: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अन्-निवर्तिन् (प्रातिपदिक) + टाप्
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st); एकवचन; विशेषण (गतेः)

• गतिः: course/destination
• गतिः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st); एकवचन

• तस्य: of him
• तस्य: Sambandha (Possessor/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग; षष्ठी-विभक्ति (Genitive/6th); एकवचन

• जायते: arises/comes to be
• जायते: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: जन् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present); प्रथमपुरुष (3rd); एकवचन; आत्मनेपद

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

• अत्र: here/in this matter
• अत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक-अव्यय

• संशयः: doubt
• संशयः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: संशय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st); एकवचन

Speaker

Ṛṣis (sages)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā-tīrtha (contextual tīrtha in Revākhaṇḍa)

Type: ghat

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: A king (nṛpa) is addressed in nearby verses; immediate addressee not explicit here

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A pilgrim at a riverbank tīrtha after snāna, facing the water with joined palms, offering tarpana to Pitṛs and Devas; subtle presence of ancestral figures receiving offerings; sanctified river landscape.

Characters & Entities

• Cakratīrtha
• Pitṛs
• Devatās

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Pilgrimage is completed by gratitude—bathing and tarpaṇa link personal purification with duty to ancestors and gods, yielding lasting spiritual progress.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Cakratīrtha, where snāna and tarpaṇa are said to grant an ‘anivartikā gati’ (irreversible spiritual destiny).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Snāna (ritual bath) followed by tarpaṇa to Pitṛs and Devatās.