Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 18

Devanagari script

श्राद्धं यः कुरुते तत्र स्नात्वा दानं विशेषतः । पितरस्तस्य तृप्यंति यावदाभूतसंप्लवम्

Transliteration

śrāddhaṃ yaḥ kurute tatra snātvā dānaṃ viśeṣataḥ | pitarastasya tṛpyaṃti yāvadābhūtasaṃplavam

Translation

Quiconque accomplit là le śrāddha — après s’être baigné et, surtout, avoir fait l’aumône — ses ancêtres (pitṛ) sont comblés jusqu’au temps de la dissolution cosmique.

Word by Word

• श्राद्धम्: śrāddha rite
• श्राद्धम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: श्राद्ध (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन

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

• कुरुते: does, performs
• कुरुते: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: लट् (वर्तमान), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3), एकवचन

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक ‘there’

• स्नात्वा: having bathed
• स्नात्वा: Purvakala-kriya (Prior action/पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: स्ना (धातु) + क्त्वा (कृदन्त)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्यय (gerund); पूर्वकालिक ‘having bathed’

• दानम्: gift, donation
• दानम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन

• विशेषतः: especially
• विशेषतः: Avyaya (Adverb/अव्यय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: विशेषतः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb); प्रकारवाचक ‘especially’

• पितरः: the ancestors
• पितरः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), बहुवचन

• तस्य: of him
• तस्य: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक, षष्ठी (6), एकवचन

• तृप्यन्ति: are satisfied
• तृप्यन्ति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: तृप् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (वर्तमान), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3), बहुवचन

• यावत्: as long as
• यावत्: Avyaya (Limit/अव्यय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यावत् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; परिमाण/अवधि ‘as long as, until’

• आभूतसंप्लवम्: until the dissolution of beings (cosmic deluge)
• आभूतसंप्लवम्: Kāla-avadhi (Time limit/कालावधि)
• Type: Noun
• Root: आ + भूत + संप्लव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; अव्ययीभाव: ‘आ-भूत-संप्लव’ = ‘until the cosmic dissolution’; used as temporal limit

Speaker

Nārada

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Nāradīya-saras

Type: kund

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Pārtha

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A devotee, freshly bathed, performs śrāddha on the lakeshore: offering piṇḍas and water-libations; subtle presence of satisfied pitṛs in the background, receiving offerings through rays of light.

Characters & Entities

• Pitṛs (ancestors)
• Nāradīya-saras

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Service to ancestors through śrāddha, supported by tīrtha-bathing and charity, is a powerful form of dharma with enduring fruit.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Nāradīya-saras, where śrāddha with snāna and dāna yields extraordinary results.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Perform snāna (bath), then śrāddha, with special emphasis on dāna (charity).