Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 41

Devanagari script

तस्मै च ज्वलनो देवः सर्वैश्वर्यं ददात्यपि । प्रथमायां तिथौ मर्त्यो यो न कुर्यान्महालयम्

Transliteration

tasmai ca jvalano devaḥ sarvaiśvaryaṃ dadātyapi | prathamāyāṃ tithau martyo yo na kuryānmahālayam

Translation

À lui, le dieu Jvalana (Agni) accorde même toute forme de prospérité. Mais le mortel qui n’accomplit pas le rite de Mahālaya au premier tithi (Prathamā)…

Word by Word

• तस्मै: to him
• तस्मै: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी (4th/चतुर्थी), एकवचन — सर्वनाम-रूप

• च: and
• च: Samuccaya (Coordination/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय — समुच्चय (conjunction)

• ज्वलनः: Fire (the blazing one)
• ज्वलनः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ज्वलन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन

• देवः: the god
• देवः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• सर्वैश्वर्यम्: all prosperity/sovereignty
• सर्वैश्वर्यम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सर्व + ऐश्वर्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन

• ददाति: gives
• ददाति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दा (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• अपि: also/even
• अपि: Nipata (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय — अवधान/समुच्चयार्थ (particle: also/even)

• प्रथमायाम्: on the first (tithi)
• प्रथमायाम्: Adhikarana (Location/Time—अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रथमा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन — तिथि-विशेषणार्थ (locative)

• तिथौ: on the lunar day
• तिथौ: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तिथि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन

• मर्त्यः: a mortal/man
• मर्त्यः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मर्त्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• यः: who
• यः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — सम्बन्धबोधक (relative pronoun)

• न: not
• न: Nishedha (Negation/निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय — निषेध (negation particle)

• कुर्यात्: should do/perform
• कुर्यात्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• महालयम्: the Mahālaya rite/observance
• महालयम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महालय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

Speaker

Skanda (deduced from Setukhaṇḍa narrative style within Skanda Purāṇa)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Setukṣetra (Setu/Rāmeśvara)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Agni as Jvalana bestows prosperity—grain, gold, cattle—upon a disciplined householder; in contrast, a shadowed vignette hints at the peril of neglecting Prathamā Mahālaya.

Characters & Entities

• Agni (Jvalana)
• Prathamā-tithi
• Mahālaya

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Timely performance of ancestral rites aligns one with cosmic order and attracts both worldly well-being and divine favor.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Setu-kṣetra as presented in Setukhaṇḍa, a pilgrimage frame often linked with Rāmeśvaram/Setu.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Perform Mahālaya (śrāddha/mahālayārcana) specifically on Prathamā-tithi; the verse begins a warning about neglecting it.