Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 2

Devanagari script

स्वाध्यायाश्च वषट्काराः स्वधाकाराश्च नित्यशः । रामाज्ञापालकाश्चैव हनुमद्भक्तितत्पराः

Transliteration

svādhyāyāśca vaṣaṭkārāḥ svadhākārāśca nityaśaḥ | rāmājñāpālakāścaiva hanumadbhaktitatparāḥ

Translation

അവർ സ്വാധ്യായത്തിൽ പരായണരായി നിത്യവും ‘വഷട്’ ‘സ്വധാ’ ഉച്ചാരണങ്ങൾ നടത്തുന്നു; രാമാജ്ഞ പാലിച്ച് ഹനുമദ്ഭക്തിയിൽ സദാ തത്പരരായിരിക്കുന്നു।

Word by Word

• स्वाध्यायाः: reciters/students of self-study (svādhyāya)
• स्वाध्यायाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: svādhyāya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन — Masculine, Nominative plural

• च: and
• च: Connector (समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय — conjunction

• वषट्काराः: utterers of ‘vaṣaṭ’
• वषट्काराः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता) (coordinated)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vaṣaṭ-kāra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; वषट् + कार (उपपद-तत्पुरुषः) — Masculine, Nominative plural

• स्वधाकाराः: utterers of ‘svadhā’
• स्वधाकाराः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता) (coordinated)
• Type: Noun
• Root: svadhā-kāra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; स्वधा + कार (उपपद-तत्पुरुषः) — Masculine, Nominative plural

• च: and
• च: Connector (समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय — conjunction

• नित्यशः: always
• नित्यशः: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial modifier/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: nityaśas (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रकार/कालवाचक-अव्यय — adverb (always/constantly)

• रामाज्ञापालकाः: keepers of Rāma’s command
• रामाज्ञापालकाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता) (coordinated)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rāma-ājñā-pālaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; राम + आज्ञा + पालक (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः) — Masculine, Nominative plural

• च: and
• च: Connector (समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय — conjunction

• एव: indeed
• एव: Emphasis (निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारण-अव्यय — emphatic particle

• हनुमद्भक्तितत्पराः: devoted to devotion to Hanumān
• हनुमद्भक्तितत्पराः: Karta (Predicate adjective/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: hanumat-bhakti-tatpara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; हनुमत् + भक्ति + तत्पर (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष-श्रृङ्खला) — Masculine, Nominative plural

Speaker

Brahmā

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Brāhmaṇas in an āśrama perform daily svādhyāya; a small yajña fire burns as vaṣaṭ is uttered; a pitṛ-tarpaṇa scene suggests svadhā; in the background a shrine with Rāma and Hanumān, devotees offering flowers, Hanumān depicted as vigilant and compassionate.

Characters & Entities

• Rāma
• Hanumān

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Dharma is holistic: learning (svādhyāya), sacrificial discipline (vaṣaṭ), ancestral reverence (svadhā), and bhakti to Rāma-Hanumān belong together.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No tīrtha is named; the verse characterizes ideal religious conduct and devotion.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Regular svādhyāya, proper yajña invocations (vaṣaṭ), and svadhā usage in ancestral offerings, coupled with devotional observance.