Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 23

Devanagari script

आनृण्यं भूपतिः प्राप्य एवं दशरथस्तदा । पितॄणां प्रययौ स्वर्गं कृतकृत्यस्तथा द्विजाः

Transliteration

ānṛṇyaṃ bhūpatiḥ prāpya evaṃ daśarathastadā | pitṝṇāṃ prayayau svargaṃ kṛtakṛtyastathā dvijāḥ

Translation

ଏହିପରି ରାଜା ଦଶରଥ ପିତୃଋଣରୁ ମୁକ୍ତି ପାଇ, ହେ ଦ୍ୱିଜମାନେ, କୃତକୃତ୍ୟ ହୋଇ ପିତୃଲୋକ ରୂପ ସ୍ୱର୍ଗକୁ ପ୍ରୟାଣ କଲେ।

Word by Word

• ānṛṇyam: freedom from debt/obligation
• ānṛṇyam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ānṛṇya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative), एकवचन

• bhūpatiḥ: the king
• bhūpatiḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhūpati (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• prāpya: having obtained
• prāpya: Purvakala-kriya (पूर्वकाल-क्रिया)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: pra-āp (धातु) + lyap (कृत्) → prāpya (क्त्वान्त/ल्यपन्त अव्यय)
• Form: ल्यप्-प्रत्ययान्त अव्यय (absolutive/gerund)

• evam: thus
• evam: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: evam (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकारवाचक (adverb of manner)

• daśarathaḥ: Daśaratha
• daśarathaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: daśaratha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• tadā: then
• tadā: Kala-adhikarana (Time/काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tadā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक (temporal adverb)

• pitṝṇām: of the ancestors/fathers
• pitṝṇām: Sambandha (Relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pitṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, बहुवचन (Genitive plural)

• prayayau: departed/went
• prayayau: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra-yā (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• svargam: to heaven
• svargam: Karma (Goal/कर्म-गति)
• Type: Noun
• Root: svarga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• kṛta-kṛtyaḥ: having fulfilled his duties
• kṛta-kṛtyaḥ: Visheshana (Adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kṛta (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक) + kṛtya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष (kṛta-kṛtya = ‘one who has done what was to be done’)

• tathā: likewise
• tathā: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रियाविशेषण

• dvijāḥ: Brahmins (twice-born)
• dvijāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvija (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

Speaker

Narrator of the Nāgarakhaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya (contextual purāṇic narrator)

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: dvijāḥ (brāhmaṇas) explicitly addressed

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Daśaratha, serene and fulfilled, departing toward Pitṛs; subtle celestial path with pitṛ-gaṇas; brāhmaṇas witnessing, hands in añjali; atmosphere of completion rather than grief.

Characters & Entities

• Daśaratha
• Pitṛs (Ancestors)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

A fulfilled life is defined by discharging dharmic debts—especially to the Pitṛs—leading to auspicious departure and higher worlds.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The broader Adhyāya 98 tīrtha is the background cause of these results; the site name is not specified in this verse.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Implicitly reinforces pitṛ-kārya (ancestral rites) and the goal of ānṛṇya; earlier verses specify śrāddha.