Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 19

Devanagari script

यमोऽपि भवति प्रीतः प्रतिजन्म युधिष्ठिर । यमस्य वाहो महिषो महिष्यस्तस्य मातरः

Transliteration

yamo'pi bhavati prītaḥ pratijanma yudhiṣṭhira | yamasya vāho mahiṣo mahiṣyastasya mātaraḥ

Translation

Même Yama se réjouit, ô Yudhiṣṭhira, naissance après naissance. Le buffle est la monture de Yama, et les bufflonnes sont tenues pour ses mères, dignes de révérence.

Word by Word

• यमः: Yama
• यमः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

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

• भवति: becomes/is
• भवति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• प्रीतः: pleased
• प्रीतः: Karta (Predicate complement/विशेष्य-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्रीत (प्रातिपदिक; √प्री-क्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past participle) विशेषण

• प्रतिजन्म: in every birth
• प्रतिजन्म: Adhikarana (Adverbial/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: प्रति + जन्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययीभाव-समास; क्रियाविशेषण (adverbial)

• युधिष्ठिर: O Yudhiṣṭhira
• युधिष्ठिर: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: युधि + स्थिर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन-विभक्ति, एकवचन; नाम (proper noun)

• यमस्य: of Yama
• यमस्य: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• वाहः: mount/vehicle
• वाहः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वाह (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• महिषः: a buffalo (male)
• महिषः: Karta (Predicate nominative/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महिष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• महिष्यः: she-buffaloes
• महिष्यः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महिषी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

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

• मातरः: mothers
• मातरः: Karta (Predicate nominative/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मातृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

Speaker

Deductive: a Purāṇic narrator speaking to Yudhiṣṭhira.

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Yudhiṣṭhira

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Yama seated with daṇḍa and pāśa, his buffalo mount beside him; a gentle buffalo-cow is honored like a mother, while a donor offers reverence and gifts, indicating Yama’s pleasure across lifetimes.

Characters & Entities

• Yama
• Yudhiṣṭhira
• Mahiṣa (buffalo)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Acts connected to revered symbols (like Yama’s mount) are said to appease cosmic judges; reverence and dāna reshape karmic outcomes across lives.

Which specific holy site (Tīrtha) is glorified here?

This verse is doctrinal within Revā-khaṇḍa; it does not name a specific tīrtha.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Implicitly supports mahiṣī-dāna by explaining Yama’s connection to the buffalo and the reverence due to buffalo-cows.