Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 22

Devanagari script

जपस्तपस्तीर्थयात्रा मृडेज्यामन्त्रसाधनम् । देवताराधनं चैव स्त्रीशूद्रपतनानि षट्

Transliteration

japastapastīrthayātrā mṛḍejyāmantrasādhanam | devatārādhanaṃ caiva strīśūdrapatanāni ṣaṭ

Translation

ジャパ（聖名誦持）、苦行、聖なる渡し場への巡礼、ルドラ礼拝、マントラの規律ある修習、そして神々への供養——この六つは、ここにおいて女性とシュードラにとって堕落を招く行いと宣言される。

Word by Word

• जपः: recitation
• जपः: Karta (Item in list/उद्देश्य)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन

• तपः: austerity
• तपः: Karta (Item in list/उद्देश्य)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तपस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन

• तीर्थयात्रा: pilgrimage
• तीर्थयात्रा: Karta (Item in list/उद्देश्य)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक) + यात्रा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; तीर्थस्य यात्रा

• मृडेज्या: worship of Śiva
• मृडेज्या: Karta (Item in list/उद्देश्य)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मृड (शिव-नाम, प्रातिपदिक) + इज्या (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; मृडस्य इज्या (पूजा)

• मन्त्रसाधनम्: mantra-practice
• मन्त्रसाधनम्: Karta (Item in list/उद्देश्य)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मन्त्र (प्रातिपदिक) + साधन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; मन्त्रस्य साधनम्

• देवताराधनम्: worship of deities
• देवताराधनम्: Karta (Item in list/उद्देश्य)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देवता (प्रातिपदिक) + आराधन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; देवतायाः आराधनम्

• च: and
• च: Connector (समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• एव: indeed/just
• एव: Discourse particle (अवधारण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारणार्थक-अव्यय (emphatic particle)

• स्त्रीशूद्रपतनानि: falls/declines for women and śūdras
• स्त्रीशूद्रपतनानि: Karta (Predicate/उद्देश्य)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्त्री (प्रातिपदिक) + शूद्र (प्रातिपदिक) + पतन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचन; द्वन्द्वः (स्त्री-शूद्रयोः पतनानि)

• षट्: six
• षट्: Sankhya (Numeral qualifier/संख्या)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: षष् (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययवत् संख्या-शब्दः; प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचनार्थे (six)

Speaker

Narrative voice (contextual Purāṇic narration within Revā Khaṇḍa; immediate speaker not explicit in this verse)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā (contextual)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Interlocutor in the episode (implied)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A sage enumerates six practices with a counting gesture; listeners appear concerned; the atmosphere is juridical and admonitory, like a dharma-assembly in an āśrama.

Characters & Entities

• Mṛḍa (Śiva)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

It frames certain intense religious disciplines as requiring strict eligibility and safeguards, warning that practice without proper adhikāra (fitness) is spiritually risky.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse mentions tīrtha-yātrā generically; the surrounding Revā Khaṇḍa context centers on the Revā (Narmadā) sacred geography.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

It lists practices—japa, tapas, tīrtha-yātrā, Śiva-worship, mantra-sādhana, and devatā-ārādhana—presented here as requiring careful adherence to prescribed dharma.