Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 60

Devanagari script

पितृपैतामहं विप्रा धर्मगुप्तोऽतिधार्मिकः । उन्मादैरप्यपस्मारैर्ग्रहैर्दुष्टैश्च ये नराः

Transliteration

pitṛpaitāmahaṃ viprā dharmagupto'tidhārmikaḥ | unmādairapyapasmārairgrahairduṣṭaiśca ye narāḥ

Translation

Ô brāhmanes, Dharmagupta—d’une droiture extrême, à l’exemple de ses pères et aïeux—(déclara) : ceux qui sont frappés de folie, d’épilepsie, et saisis par des grahas malfaisants…

Word by Word

• पितृपैतामहम्: ancestral (of father and grandfather)
• पितृपैतामहम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पितृ + पैतामह (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; द्वन्द्व-समास (पितृ च पैतामहं च)

• विप्राः: O Brahmins
• विप्राः: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विप्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; संबोधनार्थे (vocative-sense)

• धर्मगुप्तः: Dharmagupta
• धर्मगुप्तः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धर्म + गुप्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष

• अतिधार्मिकः: very righteous
• अतिधार्मिकः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अति (उपसर्ग/पूर्वपद) + धार्मिक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्मधारय (अत्यन्तं धार्मिकः)

• उन्मादैः: by madness
• उन्मादैः: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: उन्माद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

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

• अपस्मारैः: by epilepsy/fits
• अपस्मारैः: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अपस्मार (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• ग्रहैः: by seizures/afflictive spirits
• ग्रहैः: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ग्रह (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• दुष्टैः: evil
• दुष्टैः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दुष्ट (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषण (ग्रहैः)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Conjunction/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय (conjunction)

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

• नराः: men/people
• नराः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

Speaker

Narrator (introducing Dharmagupta’s proclamation)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Dhanuṣkoṭi

Type: tirtha

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Brāhmaṇas/ṛṣis (addressed as ‘viprāḥ’)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Dharmagupta, righteous like his forefathers, addresses assembled brāhmaṇas and people at the shore; sufferers of madness and epilepsy stand nearby, seeking hope as the king points toward the sacred waters.

Characters & Entities

• Dharmagupta
• Brāhmaṇas
• Grahas (afflicting forces)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The Purāṇa frames sacred geography as compassionate medicine: tīrthas relieve both moral impurity and debilitating afflictions.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse sets up the claim that Dhanuṣkoṭi (in the Setu region) grants release from such afflictions.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Implied: seeking release through tīrtha practice (completed explicitly in the next verse as ‘nimajjana’—ritual immersion).