Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 92

Devanagari script

दौःस्थात्तदपि नो कुर्युः प्रायशस्तु पितामह । तेनास्माकं परा पीडा क्षुत्पिपासासमुद्भवा

Transliteration

dauḥsthāttadapi no kuryuḥ prāyaśastu pitāmaha | tenāsmākaṃ parā pīḍā kṣutpipāsāsamudbhavā

Translation

Namun kerana kemiskinan, mereka sering tidak melakukan walaupun yang demikian itu, wahai Datuk Agung. Maka timbullah bagi kami penderitaan yang amat, lahir daripada lapar dan dahaga.

Word by Word

• dauḥsthyāt: from poverty/distress
• dauḥsthyāt: Apadana (Cause/source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dauḥsthya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गम्, पञ्चमी (Ablative/अपादान), एकवचनम्

• tat: that (rite)
• tat: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, नपुंसकलिङ्गम्, द्वितीया (Accusative/कर्म), एकवचनम्

• api: even
• api: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम् (also/even)

• naḥ: of us
• naḥ: Sambandha (Possessor/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, षष्ठी (Genitive/सम्बन्ध), बहुवचनम्

• kuryuḥ: they would do / may do
• kuryuḥ: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kṛ (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपदम्, प्रथमपुरुषः (3rd person), बहुवचनम्

• prāyaśaḥ: mostly
• prāyaśaḥ: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: prāyaśaḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम् (adverb: mostly/generally)

• tu: but
• tu: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम् (particle: but/indeed)

• pitāmaha: O Grandfather (Brahmā)
• pitāmaha: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pitāmaha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्गम्, सम्बोधन (Vocative), एकवचनम्

• tena: therefore, by that
• tena: Karana (Instrument/Reason/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुल्लिङ्गम्, तृतीया (Instrumental/करण), एकवचनम्

• asmākam: of us
• asmākam: Sambandha (Possessor/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, षष्ठी (Genitive/सम्बन्ध), बहुवचनम्

• parā: great, intense
• parā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: para (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्गम् (feminine), प्रथमा (Nominative), एकवचनम् (agreeing with pīḍā)

• pīḍā: pain, affliction
• pīḍā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pīḍā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्गम्, प्रथमा (Nominative/कर्ता), एकवचनम्

• kṣut-pipāsā-samudbhavā: arising from hunger and thirst
• kṣut-pipāsā-samudbhavā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kṣut + pipāsā + samudbhava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समासः—तत्पुरुषः (kṣut-pipāsābhyāṃ samudbhavā = arising from hunger and thirst), स्त्रीलिङ्गम्, प्रथमा, एकवचनम् (agreeing with pīḍā)

Speaker

Pitṛs, addressing Brahmā (pitāmaha)

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Brahmā (Pitāmaha)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Pitṛs describe human poverty: a contrasting tableau of humble households unable to arrange śrāddha, while pitṛs appear faint with thirst, appealing to Brahmā.

Characters & Entities

• Pitṛs
• Brahmā
• Śrāddha

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Neglect of ancestral duty—often from hardship—has karmic and subtle consequences; compassionately, dharma seeks accessible means so Pitṛs are not deprived.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No named tīrtha appears in this verse; the focus is on the Pitṛ-condition when rites are omitted.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

The verse highlights non-performance of śrāddha due to poverty, setting up the need for an alternative method.