Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 169

Devanagari script

ब्रह्मैव समिधस्तत्र ब्रह्माग्निर्ब्रह्म संस्तरः । आपो ब्रह्म गुरुब्रह्म ब्रह्मचर्यमिदं मम

Transliteration

brahmaiva samidhastatra brahmāgnirbrahma saṃstaraḥ | āpo brahma gurubrahma brahmacaryamidaṃ mama

Translation

ಅಲ್ಲಿ ಸಮಿಧೆಗಳು ಬ್ರಹ್ಮವೇ; ಅಗ್ನಿ ಬ್ರಹ್ಮವೇ; ಸಂಸ್ತರ (ಆಸನ/ಕುಶ)ವೂ ಬ್ರಹ್ಮವೇ. ಜಲ ಬ್ರಹ್ಮ; ಗುರು ಬ್ರಹ್ಮ—ಇದೇ ನನ್ನ ಬ್ರಹ್ಮಚರ್ಯ.

Word by Word

• brahma: Brahman
• brahma: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• eva: indeed
• eva: Sambandha (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारणार्थक-अव्यय

• samidhaḥ: fuel-sticks
• samidhaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: samidh (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• tatra: there/in that (discipline)
• tatra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय

• brahma-agniḥ: Brahman-fire
• brahma-agniḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman + agni (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; ‘ब्रह्म एव अग्निः’ (Brahman as the fire)

• brahma: Brahman
• brahma: Pradhana (Predicate/विशेष्य-भाव)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन (predicate use)

• saṃstaraḥ: the spread (seat/bed, covering)
• saṃstaraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: saṃstara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• āpaḥ: waters
• āpaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ap (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन (pluralia tantum)

• brahma: Brahman
• brahma: Pradhana (Predicate/विशेष्य-भाव)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन (predicate use)

• guru-brahma: the guru (as) Brahman
• guru-brahma: Pradhana (Predicate/विशेष्य-भाव)
• Type: Noun
• Root: guru + brahman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘गुरुः एव ब्रह्म’ (the guru as Brahman)

• brahmacaryam: brahmacarya
• brahmacaryam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahmacarya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन

• idam: this
• idam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• mama: of me / my
• mama: Sambandha (Possessor/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

Speaker

Lomaharṣaṇa (Sūta) to the sages (deduced from Māheśvara-khaṇḍa context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: An ascetic seated on kusa-like mat by riverbank, but the scene is suffused with a single golden Brahman-light: the fire altar appears as a luminous heart-flame; water, guru, and ritual items dissolve into one radiance.

Characters & Entities

• Brahman
• Guru

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

It internalizes yajña: all supports of practice—fire, fuel, water, even the teacher—are contemplated as Brahman.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No named site; the emphasis is on inner tīrtha—purifying discipline through Brahman-vision.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

A contemplative ritualization of brahmacarya, treating all ritual components as Brahman (a jñāna-oriented observance).