Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 58

Devanagari script

न ब्राह्मणान्परीक्षेत देवकर्मण्युप स्थिते । पैत्रकर्मणि संप्राप्ते परीक्षेत प्रयत्नतः

Transliteration

na brāhmaṇānparīkṣeta devakarmaṇyupa sthite | paitrakarmaṇi saṃprāpte parīkṣeta prayatnataḥ

Translation

Quand le rite destiné aux dieux est imminent, qu’on ne scrute pas les brāhmanes. Mais lorsque l’on accomplit le rite pour les ancêtres, qu’on examine leur aptitude avec le plus grand soin.

Word by Word

• na: not
• na: Pratiṣedha (Negation/निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्यय

• brāhmaṇān: Brahmins
• brāhmaṇān: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brāhmaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative), बहुवचन (Plural)

• parīkṣeta: should examine/test
• parīkṣeta: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pari√īkṣ (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular)

• deva-karmaṇi: in a rite for the gods
• deva-karmaṇi: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक) + karman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative), एकवचन (Singular); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (devānāṃ karma)

• upa: near/at (in attendance)
• upa: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: upa (अव्यय)
• Form: उपसर्ग/अव्यय; ‘निकट/उपस्थित’ अर्थे

• sthite: when (it is) at hand/occurring
• sthite: Adhikaraṇa (Circumstance/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √sthā (धातु) + ta (कृत्)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past passive participle); पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative), एकवचन; ‘स्थिते’ = ‘when (it is) present/at hand’

• paitra-karmaṇi: in an ancestral rite
• paitra-karmaṇi: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: paitra (प्रातिपदिक) + karman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative), एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (paitraṃ karma)

• saṃprāpte: when it has come/arrived
• saṃprāpte: Adhikaraṇa (Circumstance/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sam√prāp (धातु) + ta (कृत्)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त; पुं/नपुंस, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative), एकवचन; ‘when it has arrived/occurred’

• parīkṣeta: should examine
• parīkṣeta: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pari√īkṣ (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन

• prayatnataḥ: with effort/carefully
• prayatnataḥ: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: prayatna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तसिल्-प्रत्ययान्त अव्यय (ablatival adverb)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced from Prabhāsa-khaṇḍa māhātmya discourse style)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Interlocutor within the ongoing dialogue (female addressee continues from prior verse context)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Two juxtaposed scenes: (1) a deva-pūjā at a temple where brāhmaṇas are welcomed without scrutiny; (2) a śrāddha setting where the yajamāna discreetly consults elders/ācārya to confirm invitees’ eligibility before seating them.

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Ancestral rites demand stricter discernment, because the offering is tightly bound to lineage-duty and purity of conduct.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa-kṣetra, presented as a sacred setting for deva- and pitṛ-related rites.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Do not over-scrutinize invitees for deva-karmas, but carefully verify eligibility for pitṛ-karmas (śrāddha).