Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 101

Devanagari script

तत्र कृष्णचतुर्दश्यां यः श्राद्धं कुरुते नरः । स पितॄंस्तारयेन्नूनं दश पूर्वान्दशा परान्

Transliteration

tatra kṛṣṇacaturdaśyāṃ yaḥ śrāddhaṃ kurute naraḥ | sa pitṝṃstārayennūnaṃ daśa pūrvāndaśā parān

Translation

Quiconque accomplit là le śrāddha au jour de Kṛṣṇa-caturdaśī (quatorzième jour de la quinzaine sombre) délivre assurément ses ancêtres : dix générations avant et dix après.

Word by Word

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक अव्यय (adverb of place)

• kṛṣṇa-caturdaśyām: on the dark-fortnight fourteenth (tithi)
• kṛṣṇa-caturdaśyām: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṛṣṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + caturdaśī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन; कर्मधारय: कृष्णा चतुर्दशी (कृष्णपक्षस्य चतुर्दशी)

• yaḥ: who (he who)
• yaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; सम्बन्धबोधक सर्वनाम

• śrāddham: śrāddha rite
• śrāddham: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śrāddha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• kurute: does, performs
• kurute: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kṛ (धातु)
• Form: लट् (वर्तमान), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• naraḥ: a man
• naraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• saḥ: he
• saḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• pitṝn: the ancestors
• pitṝn: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pitṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), बहुवचन

• tārayet: would deliver, would ferry across
• tārayet: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √tṛ (धातु) caus. √tṝ (तारयति)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; causative sense

• nūnam: surely
• nūnam: Sambandha (Modifier/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: nūnam (अव्यय)
• Form: निश्चयार्थक अव्यय (particle of certainty)

• daśa: ten
• daśa: Visheshana (Quantifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: daśa (संख्याशब्द-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययवत् संख्याशब्द; (यहाँ) द्वितीया बहुवचनार्थे संख्याविशेषण

• pūrvān: former, preceding
• pūrvān: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pūrva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), बहुवचन; विशेषण (पितॄन्)

• daśa: ten
• daśa: Visheshana (Quantifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: daśa (संख्याशब्द-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययवत् संख्याशब्द; द्वितीया बहुवचनार्थे

• aparān: later, subsequent
• aparān: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: apara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), बहुवचन; विशेषण (पितॄन्)

Speaker

Sūta (deduced from section context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Bhrūṇagarta

Type: kund

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Brāhmaṇas/Ṛṣis

Visual Art Cues

Scene: At the edge of the sacred pit, a householder performs śrāddha: piṇḍas placed on darbha, tila-water offered, brāhmaṇas seated; subtle presence of pitṛs receiving offerings; the lunar day’s solemnity is palpable.

Characters & Entities

• Pitṛs
• Bhrūṇagarta

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Serving the Pitṛs through śrāddha at an empowered tīrtha extends grace across one’s lineage, expressing dharma through gratitude and remembrance.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Bhrūṇagarta Tīrtha (the ‘Bhrūṇagarta’ pit), where śrāddha is said to yield exceptional ancestral benefit.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Perform śrāddha at that tīrtha specifically on Kṛṣṇa Caturdaśī (the 14th tithi of the dark fortnight).