Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 4

Devanagari script

सौभाग्यवर्द्धनं तीर्थं जयदं दुःखनाशनम् । पिण्डदानेन चैकेन कुलानामुद्धरेत्त्रयम्

Transliteration

saubhāgyavarddhanaṃ tīrthaṃ jayadaṃ duḥkhanāśanam | piṇḍadānena caikena kulānāmuddharettrayam

Translation

ഈ തീർത്ഥം സൗഭാഗ്യം വർധിപ്പിക്കുന്നതും ജയപ്രദവും ദുഃഖനാശകവുമാണ്. ഒരൊറ്റ പിണ്ഡദാനത്താൽ മനുഷ്യൻ തന്റെ കുലത്തിലെ മൂന്ന് തലമുറകളെ ഉദ്ധരിക്കുന്നു.

Word by Word

• सौभाग्यवर्द्धनम्: increasing good fortune
• सौभाग्यवर्द्धनम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सौभाग्य + वर्द्धन (प्रातिपदिक; तत्पुरुष-समासः)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); तीर्थम् इति विशेष्यस्य विशेषणम्

• तीर्थम्: the sacred place
• तीर्थम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular)

• जयदम्: granting victory
• जयदम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: जय + द (प्रातिपदिक; उपपद-तत्पुरुषः)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); विशेषणम्

• दुःखनाशनम्: destroying sorrow
• दुःखनाशनम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दुःख + नाशन (प्रातिपदिक; तत्पुरुष-समासः)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); विशेषणम्

• पिण्डदानेन: by (the act of) offering a piṇḍa (funeral oblation)
• पिण्डदानेन: Karana (Means/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पिण्ड + दान (प्रातिपदिक; तत्पुरुष-समासः)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन (Singular)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• एकेन: by a single (offering)
• एकेन: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: एक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन (Singular); पिण्डदानेन इति सह विशेषणम्

• कुलानाम्: of families/lineages
• कुलानाम्: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कुल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (6th/Genitive), बहुवचन (Plural)

• उद्धरेत्: would uplift/deliver
• उद्धरेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: उद्-हृ (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ्-लकार (Optative), प्रथम-पुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular), परस्मैपद

• त्रयम्: three (generations)
• त्रयम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: त्रि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन (Singular); कर्म (object)

Speaker

Mārkaṇḍeya (to Yudhiṣṭhira)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Gautameśvara

Type: ghat

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Yudhiṣṭhira

Visual Art Cues

Scene: On the river ghat, a devotee offers a single piṇḍa with sesame and water; three ancestral figures appear subtly behind, receiving uplift; the shrine of Gautameśvara glows, symbolizing fortune and victory.

Characters & Entities

• Gautameśvara
• Yudhiṣṭhira

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Dharma includes care for ancestors: tīrtha rites such as piṇḍa-dāna are portrayed as spiritually effective for family uplift and inner well-being.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Gautameśvara tīrtha on the Revā (Narmadā).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Piṇḍa-dāna (offering a funerary rice-ball) is explicitly praised as delivering three generations.