Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 23

Devanagari script

प्रेतत्वं जायते यस्मात्तस्माच्छ्राद्धस्य तद्दिनम् । श्राद्धार्हं पार्थिवश्रेष्ठ विशेषेण प्रकीर्तितम्

Transliteration

pretatvaṃ jāyate yasmāttasmācchrāddhasya taddinam | śrāddhārhaṃ pārthivaśreṣṭha viśeṣeṇa prakīrtitam

Translation

Parce qu’en ce jour le défunt atteint l’état de préta, ce jour même—ô meilleur des rois—est proclamé tout particulièrement apte aux rites de śrāddha.

Word by Word

• pretatvam: state of being a preta
• pretatvam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: preta (प्रातिपदिक) + tva (प्रत्यय)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; भाववाचक (abstract noun)

• jāyate: arises/comes to be
• jāyate: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: jan (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• yasmāt: because of which/from which
• yasmāt: Hetu (Cause/हेतु)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/Ablative), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• tasmāt: therefore/from that
• tasmāt: Hetu (Reason/हेतु)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• śrāddhasya: of the śrāddha
• śrāddhasya: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śrāddha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन

• tat: that
• tat: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; सर्वनाम-विशेषण (demonstrative)

• dinam: day
• dinam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dina (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• śrāddhārham: worthy/fit for śrāddha
• śrāddhārham: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śrāddha (प्रातिपदिक) + arha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; चतुर्थी/षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषार्थे (śrāddhāya arham) = 'fit for śrāddha'

• pārthivaśreṣṭha: O best of kings
• pārthivaśreṣṭha: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pārthiva (प्रातिपदिक) + śreṣṭha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/Vocative), एकवचन; कर्मधारय (śreṣṭhaḥ pārthivaḥ)

• viśeṣeṇa: especially, in particular
• viśeṣeṇa: Prakaraṇa (Manner/प्रकार)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viśeṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन; क्रियाविशेषणार्थे (adverbial instrumental)

• prakīrtitam: is proclaimed/declared
• prakīrtitam: Kriya (Predication/क्रिया)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pra-kīrt (धातु) + kta (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle, क्त), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विधेयविशेषण (predicate)

Speaker

Unspecified (contextual narrator within Nāgarakhaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya, instructing a king)

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: King (pārthiva-śreṣṭha)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A didactic scene: a sage instructs a king about the preta-state and the special śrāddha day; behind them, a symbolic depiction of a preta at the threshold between worlds, awaiting offerings.

Characters & Entities

• pārthiva (king)
• preta
• śrāddha

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Ritual timing matters in Pitṛ-dharma: śrāddha should be performed on the day specifically connected with the preta-state for the departed’s welfare.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

This verse is part of the Nāgarakhaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya framework; the snippet itself emphasizes śrāddha-eligibility rather than naming a single tīrtha.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

It prescribes that the relevant day is specially ‘śrāddhārha’—fit for performing śrāddha for the departed.