Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 51

Devanagari script

ततः शेषाश्च तापस्यो भूषणार्थं समुत्सुकाः । सस्पर्द्धा जगृहुस्तानि भूषणानि स्वयं द्विजाः

Transliteration

tataḥ śeṣāśca tāpasyo bhūṣaṇārthaṃ samutsukāḥ | sasparddhā jagṛhustāni bhūṣaṇāni svayaṃ dvijāḥ

Translation

ನಂತರ ಉಳಿದ ತಪಸ್ವಿನಿಯರೂ ಆಭರಣಗಳಿಗಾಗಿ ಉತ್ಸುಕರಾಗಿ, ಸ್ಪರ್ಧೆಯಿಂದ ತುಂಬಿ, ಹೇ ದ್ವಿಜೋತ್ತಮ, ಆ ಆಭರಣಗಳನ್ನು ತಾವೇ ತೆಗೆದುಕೊಂಡರು।

Word by Word

• tataḥ: then, thereafter
• tataḥ: Sambandha (Discourse/Temporal)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; tataḥ = tasmāt/anantaram (thereupon/then)

• śeṣāḥ: the remaining (ones)
• śeṣāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śeṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā (1st/प्रथमा), Bahuvacana

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Conjunction)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; samuccaya (conjunction)

• tāpasyaḥ: female ascetics
• tāpasyaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tāpasī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā (1st/प्रथमा), Bahuvacana

• bhūṣaṇārtham: for ornamentation
• bhūṣaṇārtham: Prayojana (Purpose/प्रयोजन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhūṣaṇa-artha (प्रातिपदिक; भूषण + अर्थ)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Dvitīyā (2nd/द्वितीया), Ekavacana; prayojana-artha (purpose) used adverbially

• samutsukāḥ: eager
• samutsukāḥ: Karta-anvaya (Qualifier of subject)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sam-utsuka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā (1st/प्रथमा), Bahuvacana; viśeṣaṇa of śeṣāḥ/tāpasyaḥ (collective)

• sa-sparddhāḥ: with rivalry
• sa-sparddhāḥ: Karta-anvaya (Qualifier of subject)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sa-sparddhā (प्रातिपदिक; स + स्पर्द्धा)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā (1st/प्रथमा), Bahuvacana; viśeṣaṇa of subject; 'with rivalry'

• jagṛhuḥ: they took
• jagṛhuḥ: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √grah (धातु)
• Form: Liṭ-lakāra (Perfect/परोक्षभूत), Prathama-puruṣa (3rd), Bahuvacana; parasmaipada

• tāni: those
• tāni: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napुंसakaliṅga, Dvitīyā (2nd/द्वितीया), Bahuvacana; sarvanāma

• bhūṣaṇāni: ornaments
• bhūṣaṇāni: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhūṣaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napुंसakaliṅga, Dvitīyā (2nd/द्वितीया), Bahuvacana; apposition to tāni

• svayam: themselves
• svayam: Karta-prayoga (Emphatic)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: svayam (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; emphasis (by themselves)

• dvijāḥ: twice-born (brahmins)
• dvijāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvija (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā (1st/प्रथमा), Bahuvacana; (here: twice-born, i.e., brahmins)

Speaker

Narrator addressing dvija (twice-born) (explicit vocative)

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: dvijoत्तama

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A cluster of ascetic women, now ornamented, each clutching jewelry with competitive glances; the contrast between ascetic garb and glittering ornaments is visually emphasized.

Characters & Entities

• tāpasyaḥ
• dvija

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Outer renunciation is tested by inner detachment; rivalry over gifts exposes lingering attachment.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No site is named in this verse; it contributes to the moral texture of the chapter’s tīrtha account.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None directly; it describes recipients taking dāna-items in a competitive manner.