Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 42

Devanagari script

क्षुत्पिपासाकुलाः सर्वे ते तदा स्युर्न संशयः । किं पुनर्नरकस्था ये धर्मराजनिवेशने

Transliteration

kṣutpipāsākulāḥ sarve te tadā syurna saṃśayaḥ | kiṃ punarnarakasthā ye dharmarājaniveśane

Translation

Alors, sans aucun doute, tous seraient tourmentés par la faim et la soif. À plus forte raison ceux qui demeurent en enfer, dans la demeure de Dharmarāja !

Word by Word

• क्षुत्पिपासाकुलाः: distressed by hunger and thirst
• क्षुत्पिपासाकुलाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: क्षुत् (प्रातिपदिक) + पिपासा (प्रातिपदिक) + आकुल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; विशेषण—‘आकुल’ (agitated) क्षुत्-पिपासा-हेतुकः (by hunger and thirst)

• सर्वे: all
• सर्वे: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (सर्वनाम/प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; सर्वनाम-विशेषण

• ते: they
• ते: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम/प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; सर्वनाम

• तदा: then
• तदा: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तदा (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (temporal adverb)

• स्युः: would be / may be
• स्युः: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: अस् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), बहुवचन; परस्मैपद

• न: not
• न: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-अव्यय (negation particle)

• संशयः: doubt
• संशयः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: संशय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• किम्: what? / how much more?
• किम्: Sambandha (Discourse/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: किम् (सर्वनाम/प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रश्नार्थक-अव्यय (interrogative particle; here in sense ‘what then?’)

• पुनः: moreover
• पुनः: Sambandha (Discourse/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पुनः (अव्यय)
• Form: पुनरुक्ति/अधिक्यवाचक-अव्यय (again; moreover)

• नरकस्थाः: those in hell
• नरकस्थाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नरक (प्रातिपदिक) + स्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; ‘नरके स्थाः’ इति (those situated in hell)

• ये: who
• ये: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम/प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; सम्बन्धबोधक-यत् (relative pronoun)

• धर्मराजनिवेशने: in the abode of Dharmarāja (Yama)
• धर्मराजनिवेशने: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धर्मराज (प्रातिपदिक) + निवेशन्/निवेशन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; ‘धर्मराजस्य निवेशने’ (in the abode of Yama)

Speaker

Pitṛgaṇa (Ancestors), stressing consequences

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A stark vision of pitṛs tormented by thirst and hunger, contrasted with the imposing court of Dharmarāja (Yama), emphasizing the urgency of ancestral offerings.

Characters & Entities

• Dharmarāja (Yama)
• Naraka (hell)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Failure in ancestral support (tarpaṇa/śrāddha) leads to suffering; the text uses the imagery of hunger, thirst, and Yama’s realm to emphasize responsibility.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse functions as a dharma-warning within a tīrtha-narrative; no specific tirtha is named in this line.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Implicit prescription: perform tarpaṇa/śrāddha so departed beings are not left ‘hungry and thirsty,’ especially those in painful post-death states.