Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 6

Devanagari script

उपवासः प्रकर्तव्यस्तस्मिन्नहनि भक्तितः । अशक्त्या वा शरीरस्य हेमं दद्यात्स्वशक्तितः

Transliteration

upavāsaḥ prakartavyastasminnahani bhaktitaḥ | aśaktyā vā śarīrasya hemaṃ dadyātsvaśaktitaḥ

Translation

ആ ദിവസം ഭക്തിയോടെ ഉപവാസം അനുഷ്ഠിക്കണം; അല്ലെങ്കിൽ ശരീരം അശക്തമായാൽ സ്വന്തം ശേഷിയനുസരിച്ച് സ്വർണ്ണദാനം ചെയ്യണം।

Word by Word

• upavāsaḥ: fasting
• upavāsaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: upavāsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• prakartavyaḥ: to be performed
• prakartavyaḥ: Kriya (Obligation predicate/विधेय)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pra + kṛ (धातु) → kartavya (कृत्य-प्रत्यय, कृदन्त)
• Form: कृत्य-प्रत्ययान्त (कर्तव्य), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विधेय-विशेषण (to be done)

• tasmin: on that
• tasmin: Adhikarana (Location/Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (अधिकरण), एकवचन

• ahani: day
• ahani: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ahan (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन

• bhaktitaḥ: out of devotion
• bhaktitaḥ: Hetu (Cause/हेतु)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhakti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (हेतु/अपादान), एकवचन; अव्ययीभावार्थे—'भक्त्या' (out of devotion)

• aśaktyā: due to inability
• aśaktyā: Hetu (Cause/हेतु)
• Type: Noun
• Root: a-śakti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया (करण/हेतु), एकवचन; 'अशक्त्या' = due to inability

• vā: or
• vā: Sambandha (Disjunctive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (विकल्प/option)

• śarīrasya: of the body
• śarīrasya: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śarīra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, एकवचन

• hemam: gold
• hemam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hema (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• dadyāt: should give
• dadyāt: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dā (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• sva-śaktitaḥ: according to one’s ability
• sva-śaktitaḥ: Hetu (Standard/Measure/हेतु)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sva (प्रातिपदिक) + śakti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी, एकवचन; समासः—षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (svasya śaktiḥ) + तसिल्-अर्थे 'ततः' = according to one's capacity

Speaker

Sūta (contextual continuation)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: dvija audience

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A devotee on Ekādaśī either fasts in prayer before Vāsudeva or, if weak, offers a small piece of gold to a brāhmaṇa/temple as charity; compassion and practicality are emphasized.

Characters & Entities

• Upavāsa
• Hema-dāna

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sincere devotion is central; when austerity is not possible, charity offered within one’s means preserves the spirit of the vow.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific tīrtha is named in this line; it provides general vrata guidance within the chapter’s tīrtha-oriented discourse.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Fast on the prescribed day; if unable due to health, offer gold as dāna according to capacity.