Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 48

Devanagari script

गुडौदनं च नैवेद्यं रक्तवस्त्राभिवेष्टितम् । रक्तसूत्रेण दीपं च तथैवारार्तिकं नृप

Transliteration

guḍaudanaṃ ca naivedyaṃ raktavastrābhiveṣṭitam | raktasūtreṇa dīpaṃ ca tathaivārārtikaṃ nṛpa

Translation

Qu’on offre en naivedya du riz doux au jaggery, enveloppé d’un tissu rouge. Qu’on prépare aussi une lampe liée d’un fil rouge et qu’on accomplisse pareillement l’ārārtika, ô roi.

Word by Word

• guḍa-odanam: jaggery-rice (sweet rice)
• guḍa-odanam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: guḍa (प्रातिपदिक) + odana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष: गुडयुक्तः ओदनः (rice dish with jaggery)

• ca: and
• ca: Samuccaya (Conjunction/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (conjunction): च (and)

• naivedyam: food offering (naivedya)
• naivedyam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: naivedya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; (अर्पणीय-भोज्यद्रव्यं)

• rakta-vastra-abhiveṣṭitam: wrapped in red cloth
• rakta-vastra-abhiveṣṭitam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: rakta (प्रातिपदिक) + vastra (प्रातिपदिक) + abhiveṣṭita (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक, √veṣṭ ‘to wrap’, क्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष: रक्तवस्त्रेण अभिवेष्टितम् (wrapped with red cloth)

• rakta-sūtreṇa: with a red thread
• rakta-sūtreṇa: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rakta (प्रातिपदिक) + sūtra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष: रक्तं सूत्रम् (red thread)

• dīpam: a lamp
• dīpam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dīpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन

• ca: and
• ca: Samuccaya (Conjunction/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (conjunction): च (and)

• tathā: likewise
• tathā: Prakara (Manner/प्रकार)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb): तथा (likewise)

• eva: indeed
• eva: Nipata (Emphasis/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (particle): एव (indeed/just)

• ārārtikam: ārati (waving of lights)
• ārārtikam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ārārtika (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन

• nṛpa: O king
• nṛpa: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nṛpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/सम्बोधन), एकवचन

Speaker

Deductive (Nāgarakhaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya narration; likely Skanda instructing a kingly listener)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: nṛpa (king) explicitly addressed

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A red-cloth-wrapped naivedya bundle placed before Sūrya; a lamp with red thread burns brightly as the devotee performs ārati in circular motions.

Characters & Entities

• Divākara (implied)
• Naivedya (guḍaudana)
• Ārārtika

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Devotion is expressed through disciplined offerings; color and form (red cloth/thread) reinforce focused remembrance of the deity.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

This is part of a tīrtha-centered chapter, but the verse itself emphasizes ritual steps rather than naming the site.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Offer guḍaudana as naivedya, wrap it in red cloth, light a lamp with red thread, and perform ārārtika.