Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 27

Devanagari script

ये चादग्धाः कुले बालाः स्त्रियो याश्चाप्यसंस्कृताः । विपन्नास्ते तु विकिरसंमार्जनसुलालसाः

Transliteration

ye cādagdhāḥ kule bālāḥ striyo yāścāpyasaṃskṛtāḥ | vipannāste tu vikirasaṃmārjanasulālasāḥ

Translation

കുലത്തിൽ ദഹനസംസ്കാരം ലഭിക്കാതെ പോയ ബാലരും, വിധിസംസ്കാരങ്ങളില്ലാത്ത സ്ത്രീകളും ദുരവസ്ഥയിൽ ആകുമ്പോൾ ചിതറിക്കിടക്കുന്ന അവശിഷ്ടങ്ങളും തൂത്തുമാറ്റിയ ശേഷിപ്പും പോലും ആകാംക്ഷയോടെ തേടുന്നു.

Word by Word

• ये: who (those who)
• ये: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; सम्बन्धसूचक-सर्वनाम (relative pronoun)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• अदग्धाः: unburnt / not cremated
• अदग्धाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दह् (धातु) + नञ्-उपसर्ग ‘अ-’ (निषेध) → अदग्ध (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (क्त/PPP), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषण

• कुले: in the family
• कुले: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कुल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन

• बालाः: children
• बालाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: बाल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• स्त्रियः: women
• स्त्रियः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्त्री (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• याः: who (those women who)
• याः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; सम्बन्धसूचक-सर्वनाम (relative pronoun)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• अपि: also
• अपि: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: सम्भावना/समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (particle: also/even)

• असंस्कृताः: unpurified / uninitiated / without rites
• असंस्कृताः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: संस्कृ (धातु) + नञ्-उपसर्ग ‘अ-’ → असंस्कृत (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (क्त/PPP), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषण

• विपन्नाः: fallen into misfortune / perished
• विपन्नाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वि + पद् (धातु) → विपन्न (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (क्त/PPP), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषण

• ते: they
• ते: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; निर्देश-सर्वनाम (demonstrative)

• तु: but/indeed
• तु: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: विरोध/विशेषार्थक-अव्यय (particle: but/indeed)

• विकिर: scattering / dispersal
• विकिर: Sambandha (Compound-member/समासाङ्ग)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विकिर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समासपूर्वपद (पूर्वपद-प्रातिपदिक); अर्थतः ‘विकिरण/विक्षेप’

• संमार्जन: sweeping / cleaning
• संमार्जन: Sambandha (Compound-member/समासाङ्ग)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सम् + मृज् (धातु) → संमार्जन (कृदन्त/भाववाचक-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भाववाचक-नाम (action noun), समासपूर्वपद

• सुलालसाः: very eager / intensely desirous
• सुलालसाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सु (उपसर्ग/उपपद) + लालस (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; कर्मधारय-समास (सु-लालस = अत्यन्तं लालस)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced from Prabhāsa-khaṇḍa māhātmya narration style)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Implied younger addressee (putraka) continuing from prior verses

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A śrāddha ground after offerings: scattered rice and sweepings; in the liminal space, distressed subtle beings—uncremated children and uninitiated women—reach toward the remnants, conveying the pathos of neglected rites.

Characters & Entities

• Śrāddha
• Pitṛ

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Neglect of final rites leaves beings distressed; hence offerings and proper saṃskāras are acts of compassion and dharma.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The broader Prabhāsa-kṣetra context, where Śrāddha and related rites are praised as especially efficacious.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

It underscores the necessity of antyeṣṭi/saṃskāras and the potency of Śrāddha offerings—even their remnants—for the afflicted departed.