Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 88

Devanagari script

हृदयान्तर्जले जाप्या प्राणायामोऽथवा नृप । गायत्री वैष्णवी चैव सौरी शैवी यदृच्छया । तेऽपि पापैः प्रमुच्यन्त इत्येवं शङ्करोऽब्रवीत्

Transliteration

hṛdayāntarjale jāpyā prāṇāyāmo'thavā nṛpa | gāyatrī vaiṣṇavī caiva saurī śaivī yadṛcchayā | te'pi pāpaiḥ pramucyanta ityevaṃ śaṅkaro'bravīt

Translation

Ô Roi, même le japa accompli avec « l’eau intérieure » du cœur, ou bien le prāṇāyāma ; et la Gāyatrī—qu’elle soit Vaiṣṇavī, Saurī ou Śaivī—lorsqu’on la pratique spontanément avec foi, même ceux-là sont délivrés des péchés. Ainsi parla Śaṅkara.

Word by Word

• hṛdaya-antar-jale: in the water within the heart
• hṛdaya-antar-jale: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hṛdaya (प्रातिपदिक) + antara (प्रातिपदिक) + jala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन — Neuter, Locative, Singular; तत्पुरुष (hṛdayasya antare jale)

• jāpyā: to be muttered/recited (as japa)
• jāpyā: Viśeṣaṇa (Predicate qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: jāpya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — Neuter, Nominative, Singular (predicate adjective; understood with 'japaḥ/karma')

• prāṇāyāmaḥ: breath-control
• prāṇāyāmaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prāṇāyāma (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — Masculine, Nominative, Singular; तत्पुरुष (prāṇānām āyāmaḥ/niyamaḥ)

• athavā: or
• athavā: Sambandha (Alternative/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: athavā (अव्यय)
• Form: विकल्पार्थक-अव्यय (disjunctive particle)

• nṛpa: O king
• nṛpa: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nṛpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, एकवचन — Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• gāyatrī: Gāyatrī (mantra/metre)
• gāyatrī: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gāyatrī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• vaiṣṇavī: Vaiṣṇava (related to Viṣṇu)
• vaiṣṇavī: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vaiṣṇavī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-निपात (conjunction/particle)

• eva: indeed/only
• eva: Sambandha (Emphasis/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारणार्थक-निपात (restrictive/emphatic particle)

• saurī: Saura (related to Sūrya)
• saurī: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: saurī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• śaivī: Śaiva (related to Śiva)
• śaivī: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śaivī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• yadṛcchayā: by chance/spontaneously
• yadṛcchayā: Hetu/Karaṇa (Cause/Instrument/हेतु/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yadṛcchā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन — Feminine, Instrumental, Singular (अव्ययीभावार्थे: 'by chance')

• te: they
• te: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन — Masculine, Nominative, Plural (pronoun)

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

• pāpaiḥ: from sins
• pāpaiḥ: Apādāna (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pāpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया, बहुवचन — Neuter, Instrumental, Plural (ablatival sense with passive: 'from sins')

• pramucyante: are released/freed
• pramucyante: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra + muc (धातु)
• Form: लट् (वर्तमान), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन, आत्मनेपद — Present Indicative, 3rd person, Plural, Ātmanepada (passive-like sense: 'are freed')

• iti: thus
• iti: Sambandha (Quotation marker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (अव्यय)
• Form: उद्धरण/इति-निपात (quotative particle)

• evam: in this way
• evam: Sambandha (Manner/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: evam (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रकारार्थक-अव्यय (adverb: in this manner)

• śaṅkaraḥ: Śaṅkara (Śiva)
• śaṅkaraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śaṅkara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• abravīt: said/spoke
• abravīt: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: brū (धातु)
• Form: लङ् (अनद्यतन-भूत), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद — Imperfect, 3rd person, Singular, Parasmaipada

Speaker

Śaṅkara (Śiva)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā-tīrtha (contextual)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Nṛpa (King)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Śaṅkara instructs a king; behind them a riverbank suggests pilgrimage, while a subtle inner-lotus/heart motif and breath-flow lines symbolize antar-jala and prāṇāyāma; three radiant forms (Viṣṇu, Sūrya, Śiva) indicate the three Gāyatrīs.

Characters & Entities

• Śaṅkara (Śiva)
• Gāyatrī
• Vaiṣṇavī
• Saurī
• Śaivī
• Prāṇāyāma

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sincere inward practice—japa and prāṇāyāma—purifies; devotion can function as an inner tīrtha even beyond external conditions.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The broader Revā Khaṇḍa tīrtha setting remains in view, but this verse emphasizes the ‘inner tīrtha’ of the heart alongside pilgrimage.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Perform japa (including Gāyatrī in Vaiṣṇavī/Saurī/Śaivī forms) or practice prāṇāyāma; these are stated to remove sins.