Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 66

Devanagari script

असत्यभाषिणो विप्रा लोभिनो नृपसत्तम । सर्व्वविद्याप्रवीणाश्च ब्राह्मणा ब्रह्मसत्तम

Transliteration

asatyabhāṣiṇo viprā lobhino nṛpasattama | sarvvavidyāpravīṇāśca brāhmaṇā brahmasattama

Translation

Ô meilleur des rois, ces brahmanes profèrent le mensonge et sont avides ; pourtant, ô meilleur des connaisseurs de Brahman, ils excellent aussi dans toutes les branches du savoir.

Word by Word

• असत्यभाषिणः: speaking untruth
• असत्यभाषिणः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: असत्य (प्रातिपदिक) + भाषिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (असत्यं भाषन्ति ये)

• विप्राः: Brahmins
• विप्राः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विप्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

• लोभिनः: greedy
• लोभिनः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: लोभिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; इन्-प्रत्ययान्त (greedy)

• नृपसत्तम: O best of kings
• नृपसत्तम: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नृप (प्रातिपदिक) + सत्तम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative/सम्बोधन), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (नृपाणां सत्तमः)

• सर्वविद्याप्रवीणाः: skilled in all sciences
• सर्वविद्याप्रवीणाः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक) + विद्या (प्रातिपदिक) + प्रवीण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (सर्वासु विद्यासु प्रवीणाः)

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

• ब्राह्मणाः: Brahmins
• ब्राह्मणाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्राह्मण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

• ब्रह्मसत्तम: O best among Brahmins
• ब्रह्मसत्तम: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्मन् (प्रातिपदिक) + सत्तम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative/सम्बोधन), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (ब्रह्मणां सत्तमः)

Speaker

Unspecified (addressing a king; narrative voice within Dharmāraṇya Khaṇḍa)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Dharmāraṇya (context)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: nṛpa-sattama; also addressed as brahma-sattama (honorific in translation context)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A king listens as a sage describes a group of scholars: manuscripts and teaching scenes show their learning, while subtle visual cues (counting coins, furtive speech) indicate greed and untruth—moral ambiguity rendered with restraint.

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Learning (vidyā) without virtue (satya, alobha) is spiritually deficient; dharma requires integrity.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No single tirtha is praised; the verse is a moral observation within the Dharmāraṇya narrative.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly; the implied prescription is adherence to satya (truth) and freedom from lobha (greed).