Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

उत्तानपाद उवाच । द्विजाश्च कीदृशाः पूज्या अपूज्याः कीदृशाः स्मृताः । श्राद्धे वैवाहिके कार्ये दाने चैव विशेषतः

Transliteration

uttānapāda uvāca | dvijāśca kīdṛśāḥ pūjyā apūjyāḥ kīdṛśāḥ smṛtāḥ | śrāddhe vaivāhike kārye dāne caiva viśeṣataḥ

Translation

Uttānapāda berkata: “Dwija seperti apakah yang patut dihormati, dan dwija seperti apakah yang dikenang sebagai tidak patut dihormati—terutama dalam upacara śrāddha, dalam pernikahan, dan terlebih lagi ketika memberi dana?”

Word by Word

• उत्तानपादः: Uttānapāda
• उत्तानपादः: Karta (Speaker/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: उत्तानपाद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• उवाच: said
• उवाच: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच् (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), परस्मैपदम्, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• द्विजाः: Brahmins (twice-born)
• द्विजाः: Karta (Topic/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्विज (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• कीदृशाः: of what kind?
• कीदृशाः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कीदृश (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; प्रश्नवाचक-विशेषणम्

• पूज्याः: worthy of worship
• पूज्याः: Karta-predicative (Vidheya/विधेय)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पूज्य (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक; √पूज्)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विधेय-विशेषणम्; भाव्य/यत्-प्रत्यय (gerundive)

• अ-पूज्याः: not worthy of worship
• अ-पूज्याः: Karta-predicative (Vidheya/विधेय)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पूज्य (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक; √पूज्) + अ (निषेध-उपसर्ग)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; नञ्-पूर्वक; विधेय-विशेषणम्

• कीदृशाः: of what kind?
• कीदृशाः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कीदृश (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; प्रश्नवाचक-विशेषणम्

• स्मृताः: are regarded/are said
• स्मृताः: Kriya (Predicative/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्मृत (कृदन्त; √स्मृ)
• Form: भूतकालिक-कर्तरि कृदन्त (क्त), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; कर्मणि/भावे प्रयोगे ‘are considered/are said’ इत्यर्थे

• श्राद्धे: in śrāddha (ancestral rite)
• श्राद्धे: Adhikarana (Domain/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: श्राद्ध (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विषय-अधिकरण (in the context of)

• वैवाहिके: in a wedding-related
• वैवाहिके: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वैवाहिक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषणम् (कार्ये)

• कार्ये: rite/act to be done
• कार्ये: Adhikarana (Domain/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कार्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• दाने: in giving (charity)
• दाने: Adhikarana (Domain/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय

• एव: indeed/especially
• एव: Sambandha (Emphasis/अवधारण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारणार्थक-अव्यय

• विशेषतः: particularly
• विशेषतः: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: विशेषतः (अव्यय)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषण-अव्यय (adverb)

Speaker

Uttānapāda

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā (Narmadā) tīrtha sphere (contextual)

Type: river

Visual Art Cues

Scene: King Uttānapāda, seated in a modest royal court or hermitage setting, respectfully questions a sage/deity about which brāhmaṇas are to be honored or avoided in śrāddha, marriage, and dāna.

Characters & Entities

• Uttānapāda
• dvija
• śrāddha
• dāna

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Ritual merit depends not only on the act (śrāddha/dāna) but also on choosing ethically qualified recipients.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific tīrtha is named in this verse; it introduces dharma criteria within the Revā Khaṇḍa setting.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

It frames a dharma inquiry about who should or should not be honored/selected during śrāddha, marriage rites, and dāna.