Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 69

Devanagari script

कुलत्रयगृहं कीर्त्या निजया धवलीकृतम् । कृष्णं करोत्यकृ त्येन नारी दीपशिखेव तु

Transliteration

kulatrayagṛhaṃ kīrtyā nijayā dhavalīkṛtam | kṛṣṇaṃ karotyakṛ tyena nārī dīpaśikheva tu

Translation

ज्याप्रमाणे दिव्याची ज्योत काजळी निर्माण करते, त्याप्रमाणे स्त्री आपल्या दुष्कृत्यांनी स्वतःच्या कीर्तीने उजळलेल्या त्रिकुल घराण्याला काळिमा फासते.

Word by Word

• kula-traya-gṛham: the house of three generations
• kula-traya-gṛham: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kula (प्रातिपदिक) + traya (प्रातिपदिक) + gṛha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (kulatrayasya gṛham)

• kīrtyā: by fame/reputation
• kīrtyā: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kīrti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन

• nijayā: by her own
• nijayā: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nija (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन; विशेषण (qualifying kīrtyā)

• dhavalī-kṛtam: made white/brightened
• dhavalī-kṛtam: Karma-samānādhikaraṇa (Object complement)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dhavalī (प्रातिपदिक) + kṛ (धातु)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (कृत-प्रत्यय/क्त), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; कर्मणि प्रयोग (made white)

• kṛṣṇam: black/dark
• kṛṣṇam: Karma-samānādhikaraṇa (Object complement)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kṛṣṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; विशेषण (object complement)

• karoti: makes
• karoti: Kriyā (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kṛ (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; सकर्मक

• akṛtyena: by an improper deed
• akṛtyena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: akṛtya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन; नञ्-समासपूर्वक (improper act)

• nārī: a woman
• nārī: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nārī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• dīpa-śikhā: a lamp-flame
• dīpa-śikhā: Upamāna (Standard of comparison/उपमान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dīpa (प्रातिपदिक) + śikhā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (dīpasya śikhā)

• iva: like
• iva: Upamā-dyotaka (Comparator)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iva (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; उपमावाचक (particle of comparison: like/as)

• tu: but/indeed
• tu: Discourse particle (निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात (particle)

Speaker

Unspecified (didactic narrator voice in Nāgarakhaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A bright ancestral house with whitewashed walls and three shining lamps; one lamp suddenly smokes, leaving soot—symbolizing improper acts obscuring family fame.

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Improper conduct can quickly overturn long-earned virtue and reputation; dharma must be protected through right action.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific tīrtha is identified in this verse; it serves as a general dharmic illustration within the Māhātmya.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it is an ethical metaphor using the lamp-flame image.