Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 23

Devanagari script

सौवर्णनयनं कृत्वा मध्ये रत्नसमन्वितम् । यो ददाति द्विजातिभ्य इन्द्रतीर्थे तथोत्तमे

Transliteration

sauvarṇanayanaṃ kṛtvā madhye ratnasamanvitam | yo dadāti dvijātibhya indratīrthe tathottame

Translation

മദ്ധ്യത്തിൽ രത്നം പതിപ്പിച്ച സ്വർണ്ണനേത്രം നിർമ്മിച്ച് അത്യുത്തമമായ ഇന്ദ്രതീർത്ഥത്തിൽ ദ്വിജന്മാർക്ക് ദാനം ചെയ്യുന്നവൻ—അടുത്തതായി പറയപ്പെടുന്ന പ്രശംസിത ഫലം പ്രാപിക്കുന്നു.

Word by Word

• सौवर्णनयनम्: a golden eye (image/eye)
• सौवर्णनयनम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सौवर्ण-नयन (प्रातिपदिक; सुवर्ण + नयन)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (कर्म), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समासः (सुवर्णस्य नयनम् = golden eye/eyes)

• कृत्वा: having made
• कृत्वा: Kriya-visheṣaṇa (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्ययकृदन्त (absolutive/gerund), ‘having done/made’

• मध्ये: in the middle
• मध्ये: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: मध्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (locative-usage adverb), ‘in the middle’

• रत्नसमन्वितम्: adorned with gems
• रत्नसमन्वितम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: रत्न-समन्वित (प्रातिपदिक; रत्न + समन्वित)
• Form: समन्वित (क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त, ‘endowed’); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘रत्नैः समन्वितम्’ (instrumental sense in compound)

• यः: who
• यः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; सम्बन्धसूचक-यः (relative pronoun)

• ददाति: gives
• ददाति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दा (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (present), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• द्विजातिभ्यः: to the twice-born (Brahmins etc.)
• द्विजातिभ्यः: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्विजाति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/स्त्रीलिङ्ग (जाति-शब्दः), चतुर्थी-विभक्ति (सम्प्रदान), बहुवचन

• इन्द्रतीर्थे: at Indra-tīrtha
• इन्द्रतीर्थे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: इन्द्र-तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक; इन्द्र + तीर्थ)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (अधिकरण), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समासः (इन्द्रस्य तीर्थम्)

• तथा: thus; also
• तथा: Kriya-visheṣaṇa (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb), ‘thus/so/also’

• उत्तमे: excellent (place)
• उत्तमे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उत्तम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषणम् (तीर्थे)

Speaker

Unspecified (Purāṇic narrator)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Indratīrtha

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: King (bhūpa) is addressed in adjacent verses; this verse continues the same didactic narration.

Visual Art Cues

Scene: At a sacred ford/pond of Indratīrtha, a devotee presents a crafted golden eye with a central jewel to a seated learned brāhmaṇa, with the tīrtha waters and a small shrine in the background.

Characters & Entities

• Indratīrtha
• Dvijāti (Brāhmaṇas)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Targeted dāna performed at a celebrated tīrtha is taught as a dharmic act that yields specific, compassionate fruits.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Indratīrtha is explicitly named and praised as ‘excellent’ (uttama).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Donate a gem-set golden ‘eye’ (nayana) to the twice-born at Indratīrtha.