Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 65

Devanagari script

गर्दभस्तु ततो जज्ञे विड्वराहस्ततः परम् । जज्ञेऽथ सारमेयोऽसौ पश्चाद्वायसतां गतः

Transliteration

gardabhastu tato jajñe viḍvarāhastataḥ param | jajñe'tha sārameyo'sau paścādvāyasatāṃ gataḥ

Translation

Alors il naquit comme un âne ; puis comme un sanglier se nourrissant d’immondices. Ensuite il naquit comme un chien ; et plus tard il entra dans l’état d’un corbeau.

Word by Word

• gardabhaḥ: donkey
• gardabhaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gardabha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• tu: but/indeed
• tu: Sambandha/Discourse particle
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle), विरोध/अन्वयार्थे

• tataḥ: thereafter/from that
• tataḥ: Adhikaraṇa (temporal)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, अपादान/कालार्थे (from then/thereafter)

• jajñe: was born/arose
• jajñe: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: jan (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• viṭ-varāhaḥ: a boar of a viṭ (a kind of boar)
• viṭ-varāhaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viṭ (प्रातिपदिक) + varāha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (viṭ-सम्बन्धी varāhaḥ)

• tataḥ: then/thereafter
• tataḥ: Adhikaraṇa (temporal)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, क्रम/कालार्थे

• param: afterwards/next
• param: Adhikaraṇa (temporal)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: para (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययप्रयोग (accusative used adverbially), क्रमार्थे

• jajñe: was born
• jajñe: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: jan (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• atha: then
• atha: Discourse/sequence marker
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atha (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, अनन्तरार्थक (then)

• sārameyaḥ: dog (offspring of Saramā)
• sārameyaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sārameya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• asau: that one/he
• asau: Karta (co-referential subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: adas (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• paścāt: afterwards
• paścāt: Adhikaraṇa (temporal)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: paścāt (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, अनन्तर/पश्चादर्थे

• vāyasatām: of crow-hood / to crow-state
• vāyasatām: Gati/Goal (genitive with motion: to the state of)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vāyasatā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (6th/Genitive), बहुवचन; ‘-tā’ भाववाचक (state of being a crow)

• gataḥ: gone/attained
• gataḥ: Kriya (resultant state)
• Type: Verb
• Root: gam (धातु)
• Form: क्त (past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; गतः = ‘gone/attained’

Speaker

Narrator (anonymous Purāṇic narrator within Setukhaṇḍa)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Setu/Setubandha (Rāmeśvara)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A moral-illustrative sequence of rebirths: the jīva shown passing through donkey, filth-eating boar, dog, and crow forms—each in its characteristic habitat—under the shadow of karmic chains.

Characters & Entities

• Gardabha
• Varāha
• Sārameya
• Vāyasa

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The text dramatizes karmic downfall through successive lower births, urging adherence to dharma and purity of conduct.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Setu (Setubandha/Rāmeśvaram) is the overarching frame, but this verse is a moral narrative on rebirth rather than direct site-glorification.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No ritual is prescribed; the verse lists the sequence of births as karmic result.