Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 11

Devanagari script

ततोऽन्यदिवसे वह्निर्द्विजरूपो महातपाः । राजानं प्रार्थयामास रहो गत्वा शनैः शनैः

Transliteration

tato'nyadivase vahnirdvijarūpo mahātapāḥ | rājānaṃ prārthayāmāsa raho gatvā śanaiḥ śanaiḥ

Translation

പിന്നെ മറ്റൊരു ദിവസം മഹാതപസ്വിയായ വഹ്നിദേവൻ ബ്രാഹ്മണരൂപം ധരിച്ചു രാജാവിനെ സമീപിച്ചു; ഏകാന്തത്തിൽ പതുക്കെ തന്റെ അപേക്ഷ അറിയിച്ചു।

Word by Word

• tataḥ: then, thereafter
• tataḥ: Adhikarana (Context/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (indeclinable adverb): ‘thereupon/then’

• anya-divase: on another day
• anya-divase: Adhikarana (Location in time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: anya (प्रातिपदिक) + divasa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (विशेषण-विशेष्यभाव): ‘on another day’

• vahniḥ: Agni, fire (personified)
• vahniḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vahni (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन

• dvija-rūpaḥ: in the form of a Brahmin
• dvija-rūpaḥ: Karta (Subject complement/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dvija (प्रातिपदिक) + rūpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास: ‘having the form of a Brahmin’

• mahā-tapāḥ: greatly austere
• mahā-tapāḥ: Karta (Subject complement/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + tapas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्मधारय-समास: ‘of great austerity’

• rājānam: the king
• rājānam: Karman (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rājan (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन

• prārthayāmāsa: entreated
• prārthayāmāsa: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra-√arth (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect/परोक्षभूत), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद; causative sense not intended here—intensive/perfect periphrastic usage: ‘begged/entreated’

• rahaḥ: in private
• rahaḥ: Adhikarana (Manner/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: rahas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (indeclinable adverb): ‘in secret/privately’

• gatvā: having gone
• gatvā: Kriya (Prior action/पूर्वक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √gam (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund): ‘having gone’

• śanaiḥ: slowly
• śanaiḥ: Adhikarana (Manner/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: śanais (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (indeclinable adverb): ‘slowly/softly’

• śanaiḥ: very gently
• śanaiḥ: Adhikarana (Manner/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: śanais (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (indeclinable adverb), पुनरुक्ति (reduplication for emphasis)

Speaker

Mārkaṇḍeya

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā (Narmadā) sphere

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A radiant yet restrained ascetic-brāhmaṇa (Agni in disguise) approaches a king in a secluded palace corridor, speaking softly away from the court.

Characters & Entities

• Vahni (Agni)
• Duryodhana

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Deities may test human dharma through disguises; a king’s response to a brāhmaṇa-request becomes a measure of righteousness.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse is narrative; the Revā/Narmadā sacred region remains the implied backdrop.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit rite is prescribed; the setup hints toward dāna/fulfillment of a petitioner’s request as a dharmic act.