Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 26

Devanagari script

एकस्मिन्भोजिते विप्रे कोटिर्भवति भोजिता । मृतप्रजा तु या नारी वन्ध्या स्त्रीजननी तथा

Transliteration

ekasminbhojite vipre koṭirbhavati bhojitā | mṛtaprajā tu yā nārī vandhyā strījananī tathā

Translation

ഒരു ബ്രാഹ്മണനെ വിധിപൂർവ്വം ഭോജനിപ്പിച്ചാൽ, കോടി പേരെ ഭോജനിപ്പിച്ചതുപോലെ ഫലം ലഭിക്കുന്നു. സന്താനം മരിച്ച സ്ത്രീയും വന്ധ്യസ്ത്രീയും likewise സന്താനലാഭത്തിന് യോഗ്യയാകുന്നു।

Word by Word

• एकस्मिन्: in/when (there is) one
• एकस्मिन्: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: एक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/7th), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifying implied ‘भोजिते’)

• भोजिते: when (feeding) is done
• भोजिते: Adhikarana (Time/Place locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भोजित (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; √भुज्/भोज्)
• Form: सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/7th), एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त; अर्थः ‘भोजने कृते/भोजिते (when feeding is done)’

• विप्रे: in/for a brāhmaṇa
• विप्रे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विप्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/7th), एकवचन

• कोटिः: a crore; ten million
• कोटिः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कोटि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन

• भवति: becomes; is
• भवति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• भोजिता: (as if) fed; one who has been fed
• भोजिता: Karta (Predicate nominative/कर्तृसमानाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भोजित (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; √भुज्/भोज्)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past passive participle)

• मृतप्रजा: whose offspring are dead
• मृतप्रजा: Visheshana (Adjectival modifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मृत + प्रजा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारयः (‘मृता प्रजा यस्याः/यस्याः प्रजा मृता’)

• तु: but; indeed
• तु: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारण/विरोधार्थक-निपात

• या: who (female)
• या: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन; सम्बन्धबोधक-यत् (relative pronoun)

• नारी: woman
• नारी: Karta (Apposition/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नारी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन

• वन्ध्या: barren
• वन्ध्या: Visheshana (Adjectival modifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वन्ध्या (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifying ‘नारी’)

• स्त्रीजननी: mother of women (female progenitor)
• स्त्रीजननी: Karta (Predicate/apposition/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्त्री + जननी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (‘स्त्रीणां जननी’)

• तथा: likewise; so
• तथा: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial modifier/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकारवाचक/समुच्चयार्थक (adverb ‘thus/likewise’)

Speaker

Śaṅkara (Śiva) (contextual attribution within phala-śruti)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā-tīrtha (contextual)

Type: ghat

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A pilgrim household offers a seated brāhmaṇa a sanctified meal on banana leaf; nearby, a grieving woman and a barren woman pray at the riverbank shrine, receiving blessings symbolized by lotus buds/child motif.

Characters & Entities

• Brāhmaṇa

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Even a small act of dharmic charity, like feeding a worthy brāhmaṇa, yields immense merit when done with faith.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

This verse functions as a general phala-śruti within the Revā Khaṇḍa context rather than naming a single tīrtha in the line itself.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Anna-dāna—feeding a brāhmaṇa as a meritorious religious act.