Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 46

Devanagari script

ततः कृतांजलिर्भूत्वा प्रार्थयेत्पार्थिवोत्तम । अघोराः पितरः सन्तु अस्मद्गोत्रं विवर्द्धताम्

Transliteration

tataḥ kṛtāṃjalirbhūtvā prārthayetpārthivottama | aghorāḥ pitaraḥ santu asmadgotraṃ vivarddhatām

Translation

Puis, les mains jointes en vénération, ô roi excellent, qu’on prie ainsi : «Que nos Pères, les Pitṛs, soient paisibles et non terribles (aghora) ; que notre gotra, notre lignée, s’accroisse».

Word by Word

• tataḥ: then
• tataḥ: Adhikarana (Context/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (क्रियाविशेषण) = thereafter

• kṛta-añjaliḥ: with hands joined
• kṛta-añjaliḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kṛta (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक) + añjali (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: बहुव्रीहि-समास (कृतः अञ्जलिः येन सः), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Masculine, Nominative, Singular)

• bhūtvā: having become
• bhūtvā: Kriya (Gerundial action/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √bhū (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund), अव्ययभावः; अर्थ: having become

• prārthayet: should pray
• prārthayet: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra-√arth (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; धातु: √अर्थ् (to request) उपसर्ग: प्र; अर्थ: should pray/request

• pārthiva-uttama: O best of kings
• pārthiva-uttama: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pārthiva (प्रातिपदिक) + uttama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष/कर्मधारय-समास (पार्थिवेषु उत्तमः), पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन-एकवचन (Masculine, Vocative, Singular)

• aghorāḥ: non-terrible; benign
• aghorāḥ: Karta (Subject complement/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: aghora (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषणम् (Masculine, Nominative, Plural; adjective)

• pitaraḥ: ancestors
• pitaraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pitṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन (Masculine, Nominative, Plural)

• santu: let (them) be
• santu: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √as (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (imperative), परस्मैपद, तृतीयपुरुष, बहुवचन; अर्थ: let them be

• asmat-gotram: our lineage/clan
• asmat-gotram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmat (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + gotra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (अस्माकं गोत्रम्), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Neuter, Accusative, Singular)

• vivarddhatām: may it prosper
• vivarddhatām: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi-√vṛdh (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (imperative), आत्मनेपद, तृतीयपुरुष, एकवचन; धातु: √वृध् (to grow) उपसर्ग: वि; अर्थ: let it increase/prosper

Speaker

Unknown (contextual narrator within Nāgarakhaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya, addressing a king)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: pārthivo-ttama (king)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A king or householder stands with folded hands at a tīrtha bank, eyes lowered, offering a heartfelt prayer to the Pitṛs; faint ancestral silhouettes or symbolic pitṛ-loka motifs may appear in the sky.

Characters & Entities

• Pitṛs
• Gotra

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Śrāddha culminates in prayer for ancestral benevolence and the flourishing of dharmic lineage.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The tīrtha setting is implied by the chapter context, but no site-name appears in this verse.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

After the offerings, join the hands and recite a blessing-prayer for peaceful ancestors and the growth of one’s gotra.