Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 12

Devanagari script

एकविंशतिमे वर्षे यौवराज्यप्रदायकम् । राजानमथ कैकेयी वरद्वयमयाच त

Transliteration

ekaviṃśatime varṣe yauvarājyapradāyakam | rājānamatha kaikeyī varadvayamayāca ta

Translation

രാമന്റെ ഇരുപത്തൊന്നാം വർഷത്തിൽ, രാജാവ് യുവരാജ്യപദവി നൽകാൻ ഒരുങ്ങിയപ്പോൾ, കൈകേയി രാജാവിനെ സമീപിച്ച് രണ്ടു വരങ്ങൾ അപേക്ഷിച്ചു।

Word by Word

• ekaviṃśatime: in the twenty-first
• ekaviṃśatime: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ekaviṃśati (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, सप्तमी-विभक्तिः (Locative/7th), एकवचनम्; क्रमवाचक-विशेषणम् (ordinal adjective)

• varṣe: year
• varṣe: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: varṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, सप्तमी-विभक्तिः (Locative/7th), एकवचनम्

• yauvarājyapradāyakam: (him) who grants the heir-apparent-ship
• yauvarājyapradāyakam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: yauvarājya (प्रातिपदिक) + pradāyaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, द्वितीया-विभक्तिः (Accusative/2nd), एकवचनम्; कर्मविशेषणम्

• rājānam: the king
• rājānam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rājan (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, द्वितीया-विभक्तिः (Accusative/2nd), एकवचनम्

• atha: then
• atha: Sambandha (Discourse connective/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atha (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम्; अनुक्रम/अनन्तरार्थक-निपातः (then/thereupon)

• kaikeyī: Kaikeyī
• kaikeyī: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kaikeyī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्गे, प्रथमा-विभक्तिः (Nominative/1st), एकवचनम्

• varadvayam: two boons
• varadvayam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vara (प्रातिपदिक) + dvaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, द्वितीया-विभक्तिः (Accusative/2nd), एकवचनम्

• ayāca: asked
• ayāca: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: yāc (धातु)
• Form: लङ्-लकारः (Imperfect/past), प्रथमपुरुषः (3rd), एकवचनम्; परस्मैपदम्

• ta: (unclear: likely ‘him/that’)
• ta: Anukta (unclear)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: (पाठभ्रंश/अपूर्णपदं) सम्भाव्यं ‘tam/te’ इति; सर्वनाम-रूपम्

Speaker

Narrator (Purāṇic voice; likely Sūta/Lomaharṣaṇa addressing sages in Brāhma Khaṇḍa context)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Ayodhyā palace interior: Kaikeyī approaches Daśaratha at the moment of planned yuvarāja-abhiṣeka; attendants, royal emblems, and a tense stillness before the request.

Characters & Entities

• Kaikeyī
• Rāma
• Daśaratha

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Worldly power and succession are unstable; dharma is tested when desire and promises (boons) collide.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific tīrtha is named in this verse; it sets narrative context within the Dharmāraṇya section.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; the verse is narrative (itihāsa-style) rather than prescriptive.