Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 12

Devanagari script

युधिष्ठिर उवाच । व्याधिं सत्त्वक्षयं मोहं ज्ञात्वा वर्णा द्विजोत्तम । पापेभ्यो विप्रमुच्यन्ते केन तत्साधनं वद

Transliteration

yudhiṣṭhira uvāca | vyādhiṃ sattvakṣayaṃ mohaṃ jñātvā varṇā dvijottama | pāpebhyo vipramucyante kena tatsādhanaṃ vada

Translation

യുധിഷ്ഠിരൻ പറഞ്ഞു—ഹേ ദ്വിജോത്തമാ! വിവിധ വർണ്ണക്കാർ രോഗം, സത്ത്വക്ഷയം, മോഹം എന്നിവ തിരിച്ചറിഞ്ഞാൽ, അവർ പാപങ്ങളിൽ നിന്ന് ഏതു മാർഗ്ഗത്തിൽ വിമുക്തരാകും? അതിന്റെ സാധനം പറഞ്ഞുതരുക।

Word by Word

• युधिष्ठिरः: Yudhiṣṭhira
• युधिष्ठिरः: Karta (Speaker/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: युधिष्ठिर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — Masculine, Nominative singular

• उवाच: said
• उवाच: Kriya (Speech act/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच् (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन — Perfect, Parasmaipada, 3rd person singular

• व्याधिम्: disease
• व्याधिम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: व्याधि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन — Masculine, Accusative singular

• सत्त्वक्षयम्: loss of vitality/strength
• सत्त्वक्षयम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सत्त्व (प्रातिपदिक) + क्षय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुषसमास (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: सत्त्वस्य क्षयः), पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन — Masculine, Accusative singular

• मोहम्: delusion
• मोहम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मोह (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन — Masculine, Accusative singular

• ज्ञात्वा: having known
• ज्ञात्वा: Kriya (Prior action/पूर्वक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ज्ञा (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्ययकृदन्त — Absolutive/gerund: ‘having known/understood’

• वर्णाः: the social classes (varṇas)
• वर्णाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वर्ण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन — Masculine, Nominative plural

• द्विजोत्तम: O best of Brahmins
• द्विजोत्तम: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्विज (प्रातिपदिक) + उत्तम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कर्मधारयसमास (द्विजः एव उत्तमः), पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, एकवचन — Vocative singular

• पापेभ्यः: from sins
• पापेभ्यः: Apadana (Source/separation/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पाप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी, बहुवचन — Neuter, Ablative plural

• विप्रमुच्यन्ते: are freed
• विप्रमुच्यन्ते: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वि + प्र + मुच् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन — Present, Atmanepada, 3rd person plural (passive-like sense: ‘are released’)

• केन: by what (means)
• केन: Karana (Instrument/means/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: किम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंस, तृतीया, एकवचन — Instrumental singular (interrogative)

• तत्: that
• तत्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन — Neuter singular; deictic modifier of ‘साधनम्’

• साधनम्: means/remedy
• साधनम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: साधन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन — Neuter, Accusative singular

• वद: tell
• वद: Kriya (Command/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वद् (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (Imperative), परस्मैपद, मध्यमपुरुष, एकवचन — Imperative, Parasmaipada, 2nd person singular

Speaker

Yudhiṣṭhira

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā-tīrtha (contextual)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Mārkaṇḍeya (addressed as dvijottama)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Yudhiṣṭhira, thoughtful and burdened, asks a venerable sage; faint symbolic shadows of illness and confusion hover behind common people, while the sage’s calm presence suggests a remedy through dharma.

Characters & Entities

• Yudhiṣṭhira

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Self-awareness of decline and delusion should lead one to seek a dharmic remedy that purifies sin.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific tīrtha is named in this question verse, though the wider Revā Khaṇḍa frames teachings in the sacred geography of the Narmadā (Revā).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

A request is made for the sādhana (means); the specific prescriptions appear in the following replies.