Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 54

Devanagari script

एका जातिस्मृतिः सम्यगस्यामेवप्रजायते । खेचरत्वं तथैवान्यद्धर्माधर्मविनिश्चयः

Transliteration

ekā jātismṛtiḥ samyagasyāmevaprajāyate | khecaratvaṃ tathaivānyaddharmādharmaviniścayaḥ

Translation

Dans cet état même naissent trois dons distincts : la mémoire véridique des naissances passées, le pouvoir de se mouvoir dans le ciel, et le discernement net du dharma et de l’adharma.

Word by Word

• एका: one (single)
• एका: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: एक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; विशेषण (qualifying जातिस्मृतिः)

• जातिस्मृतिः: memory of birth/previous life
• जातिस्मृतिः: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जाति + स्मृति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष

• सम्यक्: properly, fully
• सम्यक्: Kriya-visheṣaṇa (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सम्यक् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रियाविशेषण (adverb)

• अस्याम्: in this (state)
• अस्याम्: Adhikaraṇa (Location/wherein)
• Type: Noun
• Root: इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• एव: indeed, only
• एव: Avadhāraṇa (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारण-निपात (emphatic particle)

• प्रजायते: arises, is produced
• प्रजायते: Kriya (Main verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र + जन् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; आत्मनेपद

• खेचरत्वम्: state of being a sky-goer (ability to move in the sky)
• खेचरत्वम्: Karta (Subject, coordinated)
• Type: Noun
• Root: खेचर + त्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; तद्धितान्त (त्व) भाववाचक; ‘खेचर-भावः’

• तथा: thus, likewise
• तथा: Kriya-visheṣaṇa (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रियाविशेषण (adverb)

• एव: indeed
• एव: Avadhāraṇa (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारण-निपात

• अन्यत्: another (thing)
• अन्यत्: Karta (Subject, coordinated)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अन्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; विशेषण/सर्वनामवत् (qualifying implied ‘thing’)

• धर्माधर्मविनिश्चयः: definite determination of dharma and adharma
• धर्माधर्मविनिश्चयः: Karta (Subject, coordinated)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धर्म + अधर्म + विनिश्चय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; (धर्म+अधर्म) द्वन्द्व-पूर्वपद + तत्पुरुष (विनिश्चयः)

Speaker

Māṃsāda

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Tripartite depiction: (1) a preta recalling past lives (visions behind the head), (2) flying through the sky above trees/river, (3) weighing dharma and adharma like a balance—presented as illustrative panels while the king listens.

Characters & Entities

• Māṃsāda
• preta-yoni

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Even in constrained states, consciousness may sharpen—memory and moral discernment can intensify, highlighting accountability across births.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No named location appears in this verse; it supports the chapter’s broader tīrtha-dharma message indirectly.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly; the verse is descriptive of capacities rather than prescriptive of rites.