Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 31

Devanagari script

अश्राद्धेयो ह्यपांक्तेयो नागराणां विशेषतः

Transliteration

aśrāddheyo hyapāṃkteyo nāgarāṇāṃ viśeṣataḥ

Translation

Il n’est pas digne de recevoir les offrandes du śrāddha, ni de s’asseoir dans la rangée du repas—surtout parmi les Nāgara.

Word by Word

• अश्राद्धेयः: unfit for śrāddha offerings
• अश्राद्धेयः: Karta-predicative (Predicate adjective/विधेय)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: श्राद्धेय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा एकवचन; नञ्-पूर्वक (अ-श्राद्धेय) — ‘श्राद्धे अयोग्यः’

• हि: indeed
• हि: Sambandha (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: हि (अव्यय)
• Form: हेतौ/निश्चये निपात (indeed/for)

• अपांक्तेयः: unfit to sit in a dining row
• अपांक्तेयः: Karta-predicative (Predicate adjective/विधेय)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पांक्तेय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा एकवचन; नञ्-पूर्वक (अ-पांक्तेय) — ‘पङ्क्तौ अयोग्यः’

• नागराणाम्: of the Nāgaras
• नागराणाम्: Sambandha (Genitive/षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नागर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; षष्ठी बहुवचन (Genitive Plural)

• विशेषतः: especially
• विशेषतः: Kriya-visheshana (Emphasis/विशेष)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: विशेषतः (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रकार/विशेषवाचक-अव्यय (especially)

Speaker

Unspecified (same authority figure; normative dharma statement)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Nāgara-kṣetra (community dharma sphere)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Nāgara brāhmaṇa assembly (implied)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A śrāddha setting with offerings and seated brāhmaṇas in a dining row; one figure is shown respectfully kept aside, indicating ‘apāṅkteya’ status; the mood is corrective rather than cruel.

Characters & Entities

• Śrāddha
• Nāgara

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Ritual privileges are tied to conduct; violating dharma results in loss of eligibility for sacred communal rites.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No site is mentioned; the verse defines ritual status within the Nāgara community context.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Exclusion from śrāddha participation and from the communal dining row (pañkti).