Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 29

Devanagari script

वर्णिभिश्च गृहस्थैश्च वानप्रस्थैश्च भिक्षुभिः । काले प्राप्ते त्वयं देहस्त्यक्तव्यो द्विजपुत्रक

Transliteration

varṇibhiśca gṛhasthaiśca vānaprasthaiśca bhikṣubhiḥ | kāle prāpte tvayaṃ dehastyaktavyo dvijaputraka

Translation

ബ്രഹ്മചാരികൾ, ഗൃഹസ്ഥർ, വാനപ്രസ്ഥർ, ഭിക്ഷു-സന്ന്യാസികൾ—എല്ലാവരും, ഹേ ദ്വിജപുത്രാ, കാലം വന്നാൽ ഈ ദേഹം ഉപേക്ഷിക്കേണ്ടതുതന്നെ।

Word by Word

• varṇibhiḥ: by brahmacārins/students
• varṇibhiḥ: Kartr̥ (Agent in passive/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: varṇin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental), बहुवचन (Plural)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (and)

• gṛhasthaiḥ: by householders
• gṛhasthaiḥ: Kartr̥ (Agent in passive/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gṛhastha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental), बहुवचन (Plural)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (and)

• vānaprasthaiḥ: by forest-dwellers (vānaprasthas)
• vānaprasthaiḥ: Kartr̥ (Agent in passive/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vānaprastha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental), बहुवचन (Plural)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (and)

• bhikṣubhiḥ: by mendicants/monks
• bhikṣubhiḥ: Kartr̥ (Agent in passive/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhikṣu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental), बहुवचन (Plural)

• kāle: at the time
• kāle: Adhikaraṇa (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative), एकवचन (Singular)

• prāpte: when (it) has arrived
• prāpte: Adhikaraṇa (Time-qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: prāpta (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; √āp धातु with pra-)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative), एकवचन (Singular); kāle इति पदस्य विशेषणम्

• tu: indeed/but
• tu: Sambandha (Discourse particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: विरोध/विशेषार्थक-निपात (particle: 'but/indeed')

• ayam: this
• ayam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), एकवचन (Singular)

• dehaḥ: body
• dehaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), एकवचन (Singular)

• tyaktavyaḥ: must be abandoned
• tyaktavyaḥ: Kriya (Obligation/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: tyaj (धातु) + tavya (कृत्-प्रत्यय)
• Form: तव्यत्-कृदन्त (gerundive/obligatory), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); कर्तरि प्रयोगे विधेय (predicate obligation)

• dvija-putraka: O son of a twice-born
• dvija-putraka: Sambodhana (Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvija-putraka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (genitive determinative: 'of a dvija' + 'son' with diminutive/affectionate -ka); पुंलिङ्ग, संबोधन-विभक्ति (Vocative), एकवचन (Singular)

Speaker

Munayaḥ (the sages)

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Dvija-putraka (son of a brāhmaṇa)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Four groups representing the āśramas stand in a row—brahmacārin with staff, gṛhastha with family, vānaprastha with bark garments, bhikṣu/saṃnyāsin with begging bowl—each shown releasing a faint silhouette (soul) upward as Time (Kāla) watches.

Characters & Entities

• Āśramas (Brahmacarya, Gṛhastha, Vānaprastha, Bhikṣu/Sannyāsa)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

All life-stages end in the same impermanence; thus one should live each āśrama with dharma and remembrance of the divine.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Setu/Rāmeśvaram section provides the pilgrimage frame, though this verse itself is a universal dharma teaching.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None directly; it references āśrama-dharma as the broader framework of disciplined living.