Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 81

Devanagari script

तथा तपस्विनः शूद्राः शूद्रा धर्मपरायणाः । शूद्रा वेदविचारज्ञा यज्ञकर्मणि चोद्यताः

Transliteration

tathā tapasvinaḥ śūdrāḥ śūdrā dharmaparāyaṇāḥ | śūdrā vedavicārajñā yajñakarmaṇi codyatāḥ

Translation

ସେହିପରି ତପସ୍ବୀ ଶୂଦ୍ରମାନେ ମଧ୍ୟ ଅଛନ୍ତି, ଧର୍ମପରାୟଣ ଶୂଦ୍ରମାନେ ମଧ୍ୟ। ବେଦବିଚାରରେ ନିପୁଣ ଶୂଦ୍ର ଏବଂ ଯଜ୍ଞକର୍ମରେ ସଦା ଉଦ୍ୟତ ଶୂଦ୍ରମାନେ ମଧ୍ୟ ଅଛନ୍ତି।

Word by Word

• तथा: likewise/also
• तथा: Sambandha (Discourse connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकार/समुच्चयार्थक-अवधारण (indeclinable adverb/conjunctive: “thus/likewise”)

• तपस्विनः: ascetics
• तपस्विनः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तपस्विन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-बहुवचन (Nominative plural)

• शूद्राः: Śūdras
• शूद्राः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शूद्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-बहुवचन (Nominative plural)

• शूद्राः: Śūdras
• शूद्राः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शूद्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-बहुवचन (Nominative plural)

• धर्मपरायणाः: devoted to dharma
• धर्मपरायणाः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: धर्म + परायण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-बहुवचन (Nominative plural); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (genitive-determinative: “whose refuge is dharma”)

• शूद्राः: Śūdras
• शूद्राः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शूद्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-बहुवचन (Nominative plural)

• वेदविचारज्ञाः: knowers of Vedic inquiry
• वेदविचारज्ञाः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वेद + विचार + ज्ञ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-बहुवचन (Nominative plural); तत्पुरुष (determinative: “knowing the inquiry/discussion of the Veda”)

• यज्ञकर्मणि: in sacrificial rites
• यज्ञकर्मणि: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यज्ञ + कर्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; सप्तमी-एकवचन (Locative singular); तत्पुरुष (determinative: “in sacrificial act/ritual work”)

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

• उद्यताः: engaged/ready
• उद्यताः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उद् + यत (धातु) → उद्यत (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त/कृतप्रत्यय (past participial adjective); पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-बहुवचन (Nominative plural)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced; exact speaker not explicit in snippet)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A tīrtha on a riverbank: ascetic Śūdras with matted hair and waterpots; others engaged in Veda-discussion in a shaded pavilion; a small yajña-vedī with offerings and smoke; pilgrims watching with reverence.

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The passage portrays a world of altered norms; it frames these shifts as part of a broader narrative of social transformation in an age of decline.

Which specific holy site (Tīrtha) is glorified here?

No tīrtha is named in this verse; it remains within the general tīrthamāhātmya discourse of Adhyāya 27.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit prescription; yajña is mentioned descriptively (engagement in sacrificial work), not as an instruction.