Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 9

Devanagari script

यो ददाति शरीरं च कृत्वा हेममयं ततः । मुच्यते नात्र संदेहः पातकैः पूर्वसंयुतैः

Transliteration

yo dadāti śarīraṃ ca kṛtvā hemamayaṃ tataḥ | mucyate nātra saṃdehaḥ pātakaiḥ pūrvasaṃyutaiḥ

Translation

Quiconque donne en aumône une forme corporelle faite d’or est délivré—sans aucun doute—des péchés autrefois amassés.

Word by Word

• yaḥ: who
• yaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; सम्बन्धक (relative pronoun)

• dadāti: gives
• dadāti: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √dā दा (धातु)
• Form: लट् (present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• śarīram: a body
• śarīram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śarīra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; कर्म

• ca: and
• ca: None
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• kṛtvā: having made
• kṛtvā: Kriya (Gerundial subordinate action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kṛ कृ (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund), पूर्वकाल (having made)

• hemamayam: made of gold
• hemamayam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: hema + maya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifies śarīram)

• tataḥ: then/thereafter
• tataḥ: None
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb), अनन्तरार्थे (thereafter/then)

• mucyate: is freed
• mucyate: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √muc मुच् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; आत्मनेपद; कर्मणि/भावे प्रयोगः (passive sense: is freed)

• na: not
• na: None
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-अव्यय (negation)

• atra: here/in this matter
• atra: None
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atra (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय (locative adverb: here/in this matter)

• saṃdehaḥ: doubt
• saṃdehaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: saṃdeha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; कर्तृपद (of implied 'asti')

• pātakaiḥ: with sins
• pātakaiḥ: Karana (Instrument/Association/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pātaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), बहुवचन; सह/हेतौ (with/by)

• pūrvasaṃyutaiḥ: previously associated (with)
• pūrvasaṃyutaiḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pūrva + saṃyuta (कृदन्त; √yuj युज्)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), बहुवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifies pātakaiḥ)

Speaker

Sūta

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāpāleśvara (implied)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Ṛṣis

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A devotee offers a small golden human-form effigy to a Śaiva priest before a liṅga shrine; sages witness, with ritual vessels and lamps nearby.

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Self-purification is supported through sacrificial generosity: symbolic giving (dāna) is portrayed as a potent means to dissolve past demerit.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The statement belongs to the Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra/Kāpāleśvara context of Adhyāya 269.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

A dāna of a ‘body’ made of gold (hemamaya-śarīra), i.e., a golden effigy/body-form gift, is prescribed for release from sins.