Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 10

Devanagari script

नात्मनः क्रतुभिः स्विष्टैर्नास्ति तीर्थैः प्रयोजनम् । यत्र वा तत्र वा कार्य्यं यतीनां प्रीणनं सदा

Transliteration

nātmanaḥ kratubhiḥ sviṣṭairnāsti tīrthaiḥ prayojanam | yatra vā tatra vā kāryyaṃ yatīnāṃ prīṇanaṃ sadā

Translation

自らのためには、よく成就した祭祀も、聖地への巡礼も、真に要するものではない。むしろ、いずこにあろうとも、常にヤティたちを喜ばせ満たすことに努めよ。

Word by Word

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (Discourse/particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्यय (negative particle)

• ātmanaḥ: of oneself
• ātmanaḥ: Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ātman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), एकवचन; सम्बन्ध (genitive)

• kratubhiḥ: by sacrifices/rites
• kratubhiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kratu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), बहुवचन; करण (instrumental)

• sviṣṭaiḥ: well-performed
• sviṣṭaiḥ: Visheshana (Adjectival qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: su + iṣṭa (कृदन्त; √yaj/इज्)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), बहुवचन; ‘क्रतुभिः’ विशेषण

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (Discourse/particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्यय

• asti: is/exists
• asti: Kriya (Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √as (अस्)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; अस्ति

• tīrthaiḥ: by pilgrimages/sacred places
• tīrthaiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tīrtha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), बहुवचन; करण (instrumental)

• prayojanam: purpose/need
• prayojanam: Karya/Phala (Predicate/Result)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prayojana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; ‘अस्ति’ इत्यस्य कर्तृ/कर्मभावे (context: predicate noun)

• yatra: where
• yatra: Adhikarana (Locative sense/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yatra (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय (relative adverb: where)

• vā: or
• vā: Sambandha (Discourse/particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vā (अव्यय)
• Form: विकल्पार्थक-अव्यय (disjunctive particle: or)

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikarana (Locative sense/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय (demonstrative adverb: there)

• vā: or
• vā: Sambandha (Discourse/particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vā (अव्यय)
• Form: विकल्पार्थक-अव्यय

• kāryam: (it) should be done
• kāryam: Kriya-artha (Obligation/predicate)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kārya (प्रातिपदिक; √kṛ/कृ)
• Form: कृत्य-प्रत्ययान्त (gerundive/obligatory), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विधेय (what should be done)

• yatīnām: of ascetics
• yatīnām: Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yati (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), बहुवचन; सम्बन्ध (genitive)

• prīṇanam: pleasing/satisfying
• prīṇanam: Karma (Object of obligation/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prīṇana (प्रातिपदिक; √prī/प्री)
• Form: भाववाचक-नाम (action noun), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘कāryam’ इत्यस्य विषयः

• sadā: always
• sadā: Kala (Temporal adjunct/काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sadā (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (adverb of time: always)

Speaker

Pitṛs (didactic continuation within the same pitṛ-centered passage)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A traveler pauses on a road and offers sustenance to an ascetic, while in the background distant sacrificial fires and pilgrimage crowds fade—signaling the verse’s hierarchy of values.

Characters & Entities

• Yatī
• Tīrtha
• Kratu (sacrifice)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Consistent service and honoring of holy renunciants is elevated as a direct and universally accessible dharma, surpassing formal rites when done with sincerity.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The broader Dvārakā Māhātmya context frames the teaching, though the verse stresses that this duty applies ‘wherever’ one is.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Prīṇana (pleasing/satisfying) of yatīs—through service, gifts, and respect—as a continual practice.