Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 34

Devanagari script

ब्रह्मचर्यादियुक्तानां धार्मिकाणां गणेश्वर । वर्णाश्रमेतराणां च रक्षिता भव सर्वदा

Transliteration

brahmacaryādiyuktānāṃ dhārmikāṇāṃ gaṇeśvara | varṇāśrametarāṇāṃ ca rakṣitā bhava sarvadā

Translation

Ô Gaṇeśvara, sois à jamais le protecteur des justes—de ceux qui observent le brahmacarya et les autres disciplines—et aussi de ceux qui se tiennent hors des cadres ordinaires de varṇa et d’āśrama.

Word by Word

• brahmacarya-ādi-yuktānām: of those endowed with celibacy etc.
• brahmacarya-ādi-yuktānām: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahmacarya (प्रातिपदिक) + ādi (अव्यय/प्रातिपदिक) + yukta (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक; √yuj युज्)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), बहुवचन; समासः तत्पुरुषः (ब्रह्मचर्यादिभिः युक्ताः)

• dhārmikāṇām: of the righteous
• dhārmikāṇām: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dhārmika (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), बहुवचन

• gaṇeśvara: O lord of the gaṇas
• gaṇeśvara: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gaṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + īśvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/Vocative), एकवचन; समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (गणानाम् ईश्वरः)

• varṇa-āśrama-etarāṇām: of those outside the varṇa-āśrama system
• varṇa-āśrama-etarāṇām: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: varṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + āśrama (प्रातिपदिक) + itara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), बहुवचन; समासः तत्पुरुषः (वर्णाश्रमयोः इतराः)

• ca: and
• ca: —
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयार्थक-निपात

• rakṣitā: protector
• rakṣitā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rakṣ (रक्ष् धातु) → rakṣitṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; कर्तृवाचक-नाम (agent noun: protector)

• bhava: be
• bhava: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: bhū (भू धातु)
• Form: लोट् (Imperative), मध्यमपुरुष (2nd), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• sarvadā: always
• sarvadā: —
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sarvadā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; नित्यकालवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (adverb of time)

Speaker

Devas

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Dharmāraṇya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Devas request Gaṇeśvara to protect disciplined ascetics and also those outside varṇāśrama; the scene shows diverse devotees—students, householders, forest-dwellers, and marginalized seekers—under Gaṇeśa’s protective aura.

Characters & Entities

• Gaṇeśvara (Gaṇeśa)
• Dhārmikas
• Brahmacarya
• Varṇa-āśrama

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Divine protection is sought for all who live righteously—both within and beyond social classifications.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The request pertains to Dharmāraṇya’s residents and practitioners, implying the tīrtha’s sanctity and communal life.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Brahmacarya and allied disciplines are referenced as dharmic observances worthy of protection.