Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 9
Devanagari script
कथितं पूर्वतो वृत्तैः पारम्पर्येण भारत
Transliteration
kathitaṃ pūrvato vṛttaiḥ pāramparyeṇa bhārata
Translation
ഹേ ഭാരത, പൂർവകാലത്തെ വൃത്തജ്ഞർ പരമ്പരയായി ഈ കഥ പറഞ്ഞുവന്നതാണ്।
Word by Word
कथितम्told/narrated
कथितम्:
Kriyā (Participial predicate)
TypeVerb
Rootकथ् (धातु)
Formक्त (past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; कर्मणि प्रयोगे ‘told’
पूर्वतःformerly/earlier
पूर्वतः:
Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverb)
TypeIndeclinable
Rootपूर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
Formतसिल्-प्रत्ययान्त अव्यय (adverb)
वृत्तैःby the elders/learned (tradition-bearers)
वृत्तैः:
Karaṇa (Agent-instrument in passive)
TypeNoun
Rootवृत्त (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक, √वृत्)
Formपुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), बहुवचन; ‘वृत्त’ = वृत्तान्तज्ञ/वृद्ध (elders/learned) अर्थे
पारम्पर्येणthrough tradition/succession
पारम्पर्येण:
Karaṇa (Means)
TypeNoun
Rootपारम्पर्य (प्रातिपदिक)
Formनपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन
भारतO Bhārata
भारत:
Sambodhana (Address)
TypeNoun
Rootभारत (प्रातिपदिक)
Formपुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative), एकवचन
Speaker
Mārkaṇḍeya
Skanda Dialogue
Listener: the king addressed as ‘Bhārata’
Visual Art Cues
Scene: A visual ‘chain’ of sages appears behind Mārkaṇḍeya—silhouettes of earlier narrators—signifying the lineage of telling; the king is addressed as ‘Bhārata’ in a solemn, authoritative tone.
Characters & Entities
B
Bhārata (addressee)P
pāramparya (tradition)FAQs
Dharma is safeguarded through pāramparya—faithful transmission from earlier teachers—so the listener may trust the narrative’s moral authority.
None is specified in this verse; it emphasizes the legitimacy of the tradition behind the story.
None; the focus is on lineage of teaching rather than a rite.