Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 33

Devanagari script

अखंडबिल्वपत्रेण महातुष्टिः प्रजायते । एकनापि यथान्येषां तथा न मम कोटिभिः

Transliteration

akhaṃḍabilvapatreṇa mahātuṣṭiḥ prajāyate | ekanāpi yathānyeṣāṃ tathā na mama koṭibhiḥ

Translation

Par une seule feuille de bilva intacte naît (en moi) une grande satisfaction. Par cette unique feuille, je suis comblé comme d’autres le sont par de nombreuses offrandes ; pour moi, même des crores d’autres dons n’y égalent pas.

Word by Word

• akhaṇḍa-bilva-patreṇa: with an unbroken bilva leaf
• akhaṇḍa-bilva-patreṇa: Karaṇa (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: akhaṇḍa (प्रातिपदिक) + bilva (प्रातिपदिक) + patra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास; करण-तृतीया

• mahā-tuṣṭiḥ: great satisfaction
• mahā-tuṣṭiḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + tuṣṭi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्मधारय-समास (mahā ca sā tuṣṭiḥ)

• prajāyate: arises, is produced
• prajāyate: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: jan (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद; प्र-उपसर्ग

• ekena: with one (leaf)
• ekena: Karaṇa (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: eka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन; संख्याविशेषण

• api: even
• api: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (particle): 'even'

• yathā: just as
• yathā: Sambandha (Comparison/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (comparative adverb): 'as/just as'

• anyeṣām: of others
• anyeṣām: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: anya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, बहुवचन

• tathā: so, likewise
• tathā: Sambandha (Correlation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (correlative adverb): 'so/in the same way'

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (Negation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (negation particle)

• mama: of me, my
• mama: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, षष्ठी, एकवचन

• koṭibhiḥ: with crores (of offerings)
• koṭibhiḥ: Karaṇa (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: koṭi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया, बहुवचन; करण-तृतीया

Speaker

Śiva (continued speech)

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: The devotee/brāhmaṇa

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A close-up devotional moment: a single intact bilva leaf is offered, and Śiva’s satisfaction is shown as a radiant calm, contrasting with heaps of lesser offerings.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva
• Bilva leaf

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

In Śiva-bhakti, sincerity and the sanctity of the offering can outweigh sheer quantity.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No tīrtha is specified; the verse glorifies bilva-patra as a supreme Śaiva offering.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Offer intact (unbroken) bilva leaves in Śiva worship; even a single leaf is said to be highly pleasing.