Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 194

Devanagari script

वर्णाश्रमप्रतिष्ठा च यज्ञस्त्रेतासु चोच्यते । सदाशिवध्यानमयं त्यक्त्वा मोक्षमचेतनाः

Transliteration

varṇāśramapratiṣṭhā ca yajñastretāsu cocyate | sadāśivadhyānamayaṃ tyaktvā mokṣamacetanāḥ

Translation

ತ್ರೇತಾಯುಗದಲ್ಲಿ ವರ್ಣಾಶ್ರಮ ಪ್ರತಿಷ್ಠೆ ಮತ್ತು ಯಜ್ಞಕರ್ಮಗಳು ಹೇಳಲ್ಪಡುತ್ತವೆ; ಆದರೆ ಸದಾಶಿವಧ್ಯಾನಮಯ ಸ್ಥಿತಿಯನ್ನು ತ್ಯಜಿಸಿ, ಅವಿವೇಕಿಗಳು ಬೇರೆ ಮಾರ್ಗಗಳಿಂದ ಮೋಕ್ಷವನ್ನು ಬಯಸುತ್ತಾರೆ.

Word by Word

• वर्णाश्रमप्रतिष्ठा: the establishment of varṇa and āśrama
• वर्णाश्रमप्रतिष्ठा: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वर्ण (प्रातिपदिक) + आश्रम (प्रातिपदिक) + प्रतिष्ठा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष: वर्णाश्रमयोः प्रतिष्ठा (establishment of varṇa and āśrama)

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

• यज्ञः: sacrifice
• यज्ञः: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यज्ञ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• त्रेतासु: in the Tretā (age)
• त्रेतासु: Adhikarana (Location/Time)
• Type: Noun
• Root: त्रेता (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative), बहुवचन (युग-नाम)

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

• उच्यते: is said/declared
• उच्यते: Kriya (Main verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), कर्मणि-प्रयोग (Passive), प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन; धातु: वच् (to say)

• सदाशिवध्यानमयम्: (that which is) full of meditation on Sadāśiva
• सदाशिवध्यानमयम्: Karma (Object of त्यक्त्वा)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सदा (अव्यय) + शिव (प्रातिपदिक) + ध्यान (प्रातिपदिक) + मय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष: सदाशिवस्य ध्यानं मयम् (consisting of meditation on Sadāśiva)

• त्यक्त्वा: having abandoned
• त्यक्त्वा: Kriya-visheshaṇa (पूर्वकालिक क्रिया/Adverbial participle)
• Type: Verb
• Root: त्यज् (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (Absolutive/Gerund), अव्ययभावः; धातु: त्यज् (to abandon)

• मोक्षम्: liberation
• मोक्षम्: Karma (Object; with implied 'seek/attain')
• Type: Noun
• Root: मोक्ष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• अचेतनाः: unaware/insentient
• अचेतनाः: Karta (Subject; implied 'they')
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अ-चेतन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; नञ्-तत्पुरुष (negated): चेतन-रहिताः

Speaker

Lomaharṣaṇa (Sūta) to the sages (deduced from Māheśvarakhaṇḍa narrative style)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A split tableau: on one side, orderly yajña with priests and fire; on the other, a yogin absorbed in Sadāśiva meditation, luminous and still; between them, figures seeking mokṣa yet looking outward, symbolizing ‘acetanāḥ’.

Characters & Entities

• Sadāśiva
• varṇāśrama
• yajña
• Tretā-yuga

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Outer order (varṇāśrama and yajña) belongs to its age, but the text elevates Sadāśiva-dhyāna as the inner essence that should not be neglected.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No site is named; the glorification is theological—centered on Sadāśiva and yuga-dharma.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Yajña is referenced as characteristic of Tretā-yuga, but no specific rite or procedure is detailed.