Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 82

Devanagari script

सुवस्त्रभूषारूपा वै ब्राह्मणा ब्रह्मवादिनः । वसिष्ठगोत्रे ये जाताः प्रवरत्रयसंयुताः

Transliteration

suvastrabhūṣārūpā vai brāhmaṇā brahmavādinaḥ | vasiṣṭhagotre ye jātāḥ pravaratrayasaṃyutāḥ

Translation

Ces brahmanes—bien vêtus, richement parés et d’aspect gracieux—sont de véritables annonciateurs du Brahman. Ceux qui naissent dans le gotra de Vasiṣṭha sont pourvus des trois pravaras, les ṛṣi ancestraux.

Word by Word

• सुवस्त्रभूषारूपाः: having good clothes, ornaments, and appearance
• सुवस्त्रभूषारूपाः: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjectival modifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सु (उपसर्ग) + वस्त्र (प्रातिपदिक) + भूषा (प्रातिपदिक) + रूप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; विशेषण (qualifier)

• वै: indeed
• वै: Sambandha/Discourse particle (निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वै (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle), अवधान/निश्चयार्थ (emphatic)

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

• ब्रह्मवादिनः: speakers/expounders of Brahman (Vedic doctrine)
• ब्रह्मवादिनः: Viśeṣaṇa/Apposition (विशेषण/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्म (प्रातिपदिक) + वादिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; ब्राह्मणानां विशेषणवत् (appositional)

• वसिष्ठगोत्रे: in the Vasiṣṭha lineage (gotra)
• वसिष्ठगोत्रे: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वसिष्ठ (प्रातिपदिक) + गोत्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन

• ये: who
• ये: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; सम्बन्धक (relative pronoun)

• जाताः: born
• जाताः: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjectival modifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: जन् (धातु) → जात (कृदन्त, क्त)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकर्मणि/भूतभावे; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; ‘ये’ इत्यस्य विशेषण

• प्रवरत्रयसंयुताः: endowed with a triad of pravaras
• प्रवरत्रयसंयुताः: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjectival modifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्रवर (प्रातिपदिक) + त्रय (प्रातिपदिक) + संयुत (कृदन्त, क्त; √युज्)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; ‘ये/ब्राह्मणाः’ इत्यस्य विशेषण; क्तान्त (past participle)

Speaker

Unspecified (narrative voice within Dharmāraṇyakhaṇḍa; likely a Purāṇic narrator addressing a king/interlocutor)

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: A king (rājan)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A courtly setting where a sage enumerates Brahmin lineages: well-dressed, ornamented brāhmaṇas seated with palm-leaf manuscripts; the king listens respectfully; a calm, scholastic atmosphere.

Characters & Entities

• Vasiṣṭha
• Brāhmaṇa
• Pravara

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

True Brahminhood is marked by commitment to Brahman/Vedic truth and disciplined lineage-based tradition (gotra–pravara), not merely outward appearance.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No single tīrtha is named in this verse; it belongs to the Dharmāraṇya context where dharma and sacred lineage are being praised.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct ritual is prescribed; the verse highlights gotra and pravara identity used in Vedic rites and ancestral invocation.