Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 51

Devanagari script

यजमानो द्विजो वाथ ब्रह्मचर्यविवर्जितः । तच्छ्राद्धं ते मया दत्तं त्रिपात्रेण विवर्जितम्

Transliteration

yajamāno dvijo vātha brahmacaryavivarjitaḥ | tacchrāddhaṃ te mayā dattaṃ tripātreṇa vivarjitam

Translation

Si le commanditaire du rite (yajamāna), qu’il soit dvija ou autre, est dépourvu de la discipline du brahmacarya, alors ce śrāddha, privé de la juste disposition des «trois récipients», je le tiens pour donné par moi à toi.

Word by Word

• yajamānaḥ: the sacrificer (patron)
• yajamānaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: √yaj (यज् धातु) → yajamāna (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: वर्तमानकृदन्त (शतृ), पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन (Present participle; Masculine, Nom., Singular)

• dvijaḥ: a Brahmin / twice-born
• dvijaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvija (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन (Masculine, Nom., Singular)

• vā: or
• vā: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; विकल्पार्थक-निपात (or)

• atha: then / also
• atha: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atha (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अनन्तरार्थक/प्रसङ्गार्थक (then/also)

• brahmacarya-vivarjitaḥ: devoid of celibacy (not observing brahmacarya)
• brahmacarya-vivarjitaḥ: Karta-samānādhikaraṇa (Subject qualifier/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: brahmacarya (प्रातिपदिक) + vi-√vṛj (वृज् धातु) → vivarjita (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त), पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन (Past participle; Masculine, Nom., Singular)

• tat: that
• tat: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (Pronoun used adjectivally; Neuter, Acc., Singular)

• śrāddham: śrāddha rite
• śrāddham: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śrāddha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (Neuter, Acc., Singular)

• te: to you / for you
• te: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tvad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: चतुर्थी/षष्ठी, एकवचन (Pronoun; Dat./Gen., Singular)

• mayā: by me
• mayā: Karana (Instrument/कर्ता-करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: त्रितीया, एकवचन (Pronoun; Instrumental, Singular)

• dattam: given
• dattam: Karma-samānādhikaraṇa (Object complement/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √dā (दा धातु) → datta (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (Past participle; Neuter, Acc., Singular)

• tri-pātreṇa: with a three-vessel set
• tri-pātreṇa: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tri (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक) + pātra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन (Neuter, Instr., Singular)

• vivarjitam: devoid of / lacking
• vivarjitam: Karma-samānādhikaraṇa (Object qualifier/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vi-√vṛj (वृज् धातु) → vivarjita (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (Past participle; Neuter, Acc., Singular)

Speaker

Brahmā (Lokapitāmaha), addressing the Rākṣasa

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: A rākṣasa (implied addressee: ‘to you’)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A yajamāna preparing for śrāddha appears distracted and undisciplined; the priest points to missing/incorrect ‘three-vessel’ setup; a rākṣasa figure symbolically receives the misdirected offering while pitṛs remain unappeased in the background.

Characters & Entities

• Brahmā
• Rākṣasa
• Yajamāna
• Dvija
• Brahmacarya
• Tripātra
• Śrāddha

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Inner discipline of the performer/sponsor is essential; without it, even formal rites lose their intended efficacy.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The teaching is embedded in the Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra-māhātmya narrative of Nāgara Khaṇḍa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

The sponsor should observe brahmacarya and follow proper śrāddha arrangements such as the tripātra protocol.