Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 112

Devanagari script

ब्राह्मणानां कुले जातो जातिमात्रो यदा भवेत् । अनुपेतः क्रियाहीनो मात्र इत्यभिधीयते

Transliteration

brāhmaṇānāṃ kule jāto jātimātro yadā bhavet | anupetaḥ kriyāhīno mātra ityabhidhīyate

Translation

Sesiapa yang lahir dalam keturunan brāhmaṇa namun brāhmaṇa hanya pada kelahiran semata—belum menerima upanayana dan tidak menjalankan kewajipan yang ditetapkan—dia disebut “mātra”, yakni brāhmaṇa yang sekadar lahir sahaja.

Word by Word

• brāhmaṇānām: of Brahmins
• brāhmaṇānām: Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brāhmaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• kule: in a family
• kule: Adhikaraṇa (Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kula (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• jātaḥ: born
• jātaḥ: Karta (Subject qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √jan (धातु) ; जात (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकृदन्तः (क्त), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्तरि—‘born’

• jātimātraḥ: only by birth (a Brahmin)
• jātimātraḥ: Karta (Subject qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: jāti (प्रातिपदिक) + mātra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः तत्पुरुषः/कर्मधारय (जात्या मात्रः = ‘only by birth’)

• yadā: when
• yadā: Sambandha (Temporal)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yadā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक (temporal adverb: when)

• bhavet: should be/becomes
• bhavet: Kriya (Action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √bhū (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ्-लकार (Optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• anupetaḥ: uninitiated (without upanayana)
• anupetaḥ: Karta (Subject qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: anu + √i (धातु) ; अनुपेत (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकृदन्तः (क्त), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; नञ्-भावः—‘not initiated/without upanayana’

• kriyāhīnaḥ: devoid of rites
• kriyāhīnaḥ: Karta (Subject qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kriyā (प्रातिपदिक) + hīna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः तृतीया/षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष-प्रायः (क्रियाभिः हीनः / क्रियायाः हीनः)

• mātraḥ: ‘mātra’
• mātraḥ: Karta (Predicate nominal)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mātra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• iti: thus
• iti: Sambandha (Quotative)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; उद्धरण/इति-निपात (quotative particle)

• abhidhīyate: is called
• abhidhīyate: Kriya (Action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: abhi + √dhā (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; कर्मणि प्रयोगः (passive)

Speaker

Lomaharṣaṇa (Sūta), contextually within Māheśvarakhaṇḍa narration to the sages

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: vipra (interlocutor)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A young man wearing no sacred thread stands before a ritual fire that is unlit; beside him a guru offers the yajñopavīta and a ladle, indicating initiation and duty; a shadow labeled 'jāti-mātra' fades as he accepts discipline.

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Birth alone is not the full measure; initiation and lived dharma are essential to religious identity and merit.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No site is mentioned; the focus is on dharma qualifications.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Upanayana (initiation) is implicitly referenced as a key rite whose absence marks deficiency.