Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 32

Devanagari script

गोपीचन्दनखंडं तु यो ददातीह वैष्णवे । कुलमेकोत्तरं तेन शतं तारितमेव वा

Transliteration

gopīcandanakhaṃḍaṃ tu yo dadātīha vaiṣṇave | kulamekottaraṃ tena śataṃ tāritameva vā

Translation

ഇവിടെ ഒരു വൈഷ്ണവനു ഗോപീചന്ദനത്തിന്റെ ഒരു ഖണ്ഡം ദാനം ചെയ്യുന്നവൻ, ആ പുണ്യഫലത്താൽ തന്റെ കുലത്തിലെ നൂറ്റൊന്ന് പേർ നിശ്ചയമായി തരിക്കപ്പെടുന്നു।

Word by Word

• gopīcandanakhaṇḍam: a piece of gopī-candana
• gopīcandanakhaṇḍam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gopī-candana-khaṇḍa (प्रातिपदिक; गोपी + चन्दन + खण्ड)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; Accusative singular

• tu: indeed/but
• tu: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय; विरोध/अवधारणार्थक निपात (particle ‘but/indeed’)

• yaḥ: who (he who)
• yaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; Nominative singular

• dadāti: gives
• dadāti: Kriyā (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dā (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; parasmaipada

• iha: here
• iha: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iha (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (adverb ‘here/in this world’)

• vaiṣṇave: to a Vaiṣṇava
• vaiṣṇave: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vaiṣṇava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी (4th/चतुर्थी), एकवचन; Dative singular

• kulam: family/lineage
• kulam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kula (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; Accusative singular

• ekottaram: one more (i.e., plus one)
• ekottaram: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: eka-uttara (प्रातिपदिक; एक + उत्तर)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; Accusative singular; संख्याविशेषण (numerical qualifier)

• tena: by him/through that (act)
• tena: Karana (Means/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन; Instrumental singular

• śatam: a hundred
• śatam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; Accusative singular (number)

• tāritam: saved/caused to cross over
• tāritam: Karmadhāraya/Predicate complement (विधेय)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tārita (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; √tṝ (धातु) + णिच् + क्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; past participle used predicatively (agreeing with śatam/kulam)

• eva: indeed
• eva: Sambandha (Emphasis/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारणार्थक निपात (emphatic particle ‘indeed/only’)

• vā: or
• vā: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vā (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय; विकल्पार्थक निपात (disjunctive particle ‘or’)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced from Dvārakā Māhātmya context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Dvārakā

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: A king (bhūpa/māhīpāla) addressed in the passage

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A pilgrim in Dvārakā offers a small lump of pale gopīcandana to a serene Vaiṣṇava devotee; behind them rise the sea, temple spires, and a saffron-flagged shrine; subtle ancestral figures appear as if being ‘carried across’ by divine grace.

Characters & Entities

• Gopīcandana
• Vaiṣṇava

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Charity offered to devotees using sacred items becomes a powerful generator of merit that uplifts one’s lineage.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Dvārakā is glorified indirectly through gopīcandana, treated as a sanctifier connected to Kṛṣṇa’s abode.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Dāna: giving a portion of gopīcandana to a Vaiṣṇava is prescribed as highly meritorious.