Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 43

Devanagari script

एकाहारा निराहारा एकांतरकृताशनाः । त्रिरात्रोपोषिताश्चान्ये कृच्छ्रचांद्रायणे रताः

Transliteration

ekāhārā nirāhārā ekāṃtarakṛtāśanāḥ | trirātropoṣitāścānye kṛcchracāṃdrāyaṇe ratāḥ

Translation

Les uns ne prenaient qu’un seul repas par jour ; d’autres ne mangeaient rien ; certains se nourrissaient un jour sur deux. D’autres encore jeûnaient trois nuits, voués à de rudes observances telles que les vœux de Kṛcchra et de Cāndrāyaṇa.

Word by Word

• एकाहाराः: having one meal (a day)
• एकाहाराः: Visheshana (Adjectival)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: एक + आहार (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; समासः—एकाहार (तत्पुरुषः: ‘एकः आहारः यस्य/येषाम्’)

• निराहाराः: fasting/without food
• निराहाराः: Visheshana (Adjectival)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: निर् + आहार (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; समासः—निराहार (उपपद-तत्पुरुषः/नञ्-तत्पुरुषः अर्थे: ‘आहार-रहित’)

• एकान्तरकृताशनाः: eating on alternate days
• एकान्तरकृताशनाः: Visheshana (Adjectival)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: एक + अन्तर + कृत + अशन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; समासः—एकान्तर-कृत-आशन (तत्पुरुषः: ‘एकान्तरं कृतम् अशनं येषाम्’ = eating on alternate days)

• त्रिरात्रोपोषिताः: having fasted for three nights
• त्रिरात्रोपोषिताः: Visheshana (Adjectival)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: त्रि + रात्रि + उपोषित (प्रातिपदिक/कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त) ‘उपोषित’, पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; समासः—त्रिरात्र-उपोषित (तत्पुरुषः: ‘त्रिरात्रं उपोषिताः’)

• च: and
• च: Samuccaya (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• अन्ये: others
• अन्ये: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अन्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; सर्वनाम-प्रयोग (others)

• कृच्छ्रचांद्रायणे: in the Kṛcchra and Cāndrāyaṇa vows
• कृच्छ्रचांद्रायणे: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कृच्छ्र + चान्द्रायण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (व्रत-नाम), सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; समासः—कृच्छ्र-चान्द्रायण (द्वन्द्वः: two austerities)

• रताः: engaged/devoted
• रताः: Visheshana (Adjectival)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: रम् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; ‘अन्ये’ इत्यस्य विशेषणम्

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) [deduced from Purāṇic māhātmya narration style in Nāgara-khaṇḍa]

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Multiple ascetics in the same sacred precinct: one taking a single meal, another in complete fast, another eating every other day; a few seated in meditation with water-pots, rosaries, and fire-altars nearby.

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Disciplined restraint—especially fasting and penance—purifies the seeker and intensifies the merit of dwelling in a sacred kṣetra.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The broader Adhyāya context glorifies the Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra within the Nāgara-khaṇḍa’s Tīrthamāhātmya.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Fasting regimens (one-meal, total fasting, alternate-day eating, three-night fast) and formal vows like Kṛcchra and Cāndrāyaṇa.