Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 29

Devanagari script

मासद्वयं च मत्स्यस्य मासमेकं कपिञ्जले । नान्येषां योजयेन्मांसं पितृकार्ये कथंचन

Transliteration

māsadvayaṃ ca matsyasya māsamekaṃ kapiñjale | nānyeṣāṃ yojayenmāṃsaṃ pitṛkārye kathaṃcana

Translation

Le poisson procure satisfaction pendant deux mois, et le kapiñjala pendant un mois. On ne doit en aucune manière employer la viande d’autres êtres dans le rite destiné aux Pitṛ.

Word by Word

• māsa-dvayam: two months
• māsa-dvayam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: māsa (प्रातिपदिक) + dvaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (कर्म), एकवचन; द्विगु-समासः (द्वौ मासौ इति)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• matsyasya: of fish
• matsyasya: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: matsya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (सम्बन्ध), एकवचन

• māsa-ekam: one month
• māsa-ekam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: māsa (प्रातिपदिक) + eka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (कर्म), एकवचन; द्विगु-समासः (एकः मासः इति)

• kapiñjale: in/for the kapiñjala bird (francolin)
• kapiñjale: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kapiñjala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (अधिकरण), एकवचन

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (Negation/निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-अव्यय (particle of negation)

• anyeṣām: of others
• anyeṣām: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: anya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (सम्बन्ध), बहुवचन

• yojayet: one should employ/use
• yojayet: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: yuj (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• māṃsam: meat
• māṃsam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: māṃsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (कर्म), एकवचन

• pitṛ-kārye: in the rite for the ancestors
• pitṛ-kārye: Adhikarana (Context/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pitṛ (प्रातिपदिक) + kārya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (अधिकरण), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (पितॄणां कार्यम्)

• kathaṃcana: in any way (at all)
• kathaṃcana: Sambandha (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kathaṃcana (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकार/निषेध-प्रयोगे ‘कदापि/कथंचित्’ (in any way/at all)

Speaker

Mārkaṇḍeya (continuing reply)

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: mahārāja (king)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: The sage raises a hand in prohibition while indicating a limited set of offerings (fish and kapiñjala) and pushing away a tray of miscellaneous meats, emphasizing ritual restriction.

Characters & Entities

• matsya (fish)
• kapiñjala
• pitṛ (ancestors)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Discipline in ritual matters safeguards purity; not everything is interchangeable in sacred duties toward the Pitṛs.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific tīrtha is named; the teaching is a dharma-rule within the Tīrthamāhātmya narrative setting.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Fish is said to satisfy for two months, kapiñjala for one; other meats are prohibited for pitṛ-kārya.