Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 22

Devanagari script

अहमासं वणिग्जात्या पुरा वै वैदिशे पुरे । निर्धनो बंधुभिर्मुक्तः परिभूतः पदेपदे

Transliteration

ahamāsaṃ vaṇigjātyā purā vai vaidiśe pure | nirdhano baṃdhubhirmuktaḥ paribhūtaḥ padepade

Translation

മുമ്പ് വിദിശാ നഗരത്തിൽ ഞാൻ വണിക്‌കുലത്തിൽ ജനിച്ചു. എങ്കിലും ഞാൻ ദരിദ്രൻ—ബന്ധുക്കൾ ഉപേക്ഷിച്ചവൻ, പടിപടിയായി അപമാനിതൻ.

Word by Word

• aham: I
• aham: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, प्रथमा (1st) एकवचन; (nom sg)

• āsam: was
• āsam: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: as (धातु)
• Form: लङ् (imperfect/past), उत्तमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• vaṇik: a merchant
• vaṇik: Karta (Predicate nominal/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vaṇij (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st) एकवचन; (nom sg)

• jātyā: by birth/caste
• jātyā: Karana (Means/Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jāti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd) एकवचन; (instr sg)

• purā: formerly
• purā: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: purā (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (adverb: formerly)

• vai: indeed
• vai: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vai (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (emphatic particle)

• vaidiśe: in Vaidisha (region)
• vaidiśe: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vaidiśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th) एकवचन; (loc sg), विशेषण

• pure: in the city
• pure: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pura (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th) एकवचन; (loc sg)

• nirdhanaḥ: poor
• nirdhanaḥ: Karta (Subject complement/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nirdhana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st) एकवचन; (nom sg), विशेषण

• bandhubhiḥ: by (my) relatives
• bandhubhiḥ: Karana (Agent-instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bandhu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd) बहुवचन; (instr pl)

• muktaḥ: abandoned/released
• muktaḥ: Karta (State of subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √muc (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st) एकवचन; (nom sg)

• paribhūtaḥ: insulted/treated with contempt
• paribhūtaḥ: Karta (State of subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pari√bhū (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st) एकवचन; (nom sg)

• pade: at every step
• pade: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pada (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th) एकवचन; (loc sg)

• pade: at every step
• pade: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pada (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th) एकवचन; (loc sg); पुनरुक्ति (reduplication for distributive sense)

Speaker

Unspecified narrator (a merchant/traveler) within Nāgarakhaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A destitute merchant-born man in Vidiśā recounts his misfortune: shabby clothing, empty home, relatives turning away, public humiliation—setting the emotional ground for a later sacred turning point.

Characters & Entities

• Vidiśā

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Worldly status is unstable; adversity can become the doorway to dharma and ultimately to seeking refuge in sacred places and right conduct.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

This verse sets the narrator’s background in Vidiśā; the specific tīrtha is introduced later in the chapter as the journey unfolds.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None in this verse; it is narrative setup describing the speaker’s social and economic condition.