Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 2

Devanagari script

पद्भ्यामेव समायाता ह्यष्टषष्टिर्द्विजोत्तमाः । परिश्रांताः कृशांगाश्च धूलिधूसरिताननाः

Transliteration

padbhyāmeva samāyātā hyaṣṭaṣaṣṭirdvijottamāḥ | pariśrāṃtāḥ kṛśāṃgāśca dhūlidhūsaritānanāḥ

Translation

ਅੱਠਾਹਠ ਉੱਤਮ ਦਵਿਜ ਪੈਦਲ ਹੀ ਆ ਪਹੁੰਚੇ—ਥੱਕੇ ਹੋਏ, ਕ੍ਰਿਸ਼ ਅੰਗਾਂ ਵਾਲੇ, ਅਤੇ ਧੂੜ ਨਾਲ ਮਲਿਨ ਚਿਹਰਿਆਂ ਵਾਲੇ।

Word by Word

• पद्भ्याम्: with (their) feet
• पद्भ्याम्: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पद् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), द्विवचन — instrumental dual ‘with (their) feet’

• एव: only; indeed
• एव: Avadhāraṇa (Emphasis/अवधारण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: निश्चय/अवधारणार्थक-अव्यय (particle) — ‘indeed/only’

• समायाताः: arrived
• समायाताः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: समायात (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; सम्+आ+√या (धातु) + क्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त — ‘having come/arrived’

• हि: indeed
• हि: Sambandha-bodhaka (Discourse particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: हि (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle) — explanatory/emphatic ‘indeed/for’

• अष्टषष्टिः: sixty-eight
• अष्टषष्टिः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अष्टषष्टि (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; संख्या ‘अष्ट + षष्टि’ (copulative numeral) — ‘sixty-eight’

• द्विजोत्तमाः: excellent Brahmins
• द्विजोत्तमाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्विज (प्रातिपदिक) + उत्तम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; कर्मधारय/तत्पुरुष ‘उत्तमाः द्विजाः’ — ‘best of Brahmins’

• परिश्रान्ताः: exhausted
• परिश्रान्ताः: Karta-samānādhikaraṇa (Predicate adjective/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: परिश्रान्त (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; परि+√श्रम् (धातु) + क्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त — ‘exhausted’

• कृशाङ्गाः: thin-limbed
• कृशाङ्गाः: Karta-samānādhikaraṇa (Predicate adjective/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कृश (प्रातिपदिक) + अङ्ग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; बहुव्रीहि ‘कृशानि अङ्गानि येषाम्’ — ‘having thin limbs’

• च: and
• च: Samuccaya (Connector/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• धूलिधूसरिताननाः: with faces covered/greyed by dust
• धूलिधूसरिताननाः: Karta-samānādhikaraṇa (Predicate adjective/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: धूलि (प्रातिपदिक) + धूसरित (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; √धूसर्/धूसर (धातु) + क्त) + आनन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; बहुव्रीहि ‘धूल्या धूसरितम् आननं येषाम्’ — ‘whose faces are dust-greyed’

Speaker

Sūta (narration)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A group of sixty-eight brāhmaṇas, dusty and thin, arrive on a road; some lean on staffs, some carry small bundles; their faces show fatigue and hunger; a settlement/household appears ahead.

Characters & Entities

• brāhmaṇas (dvijottamāḥ)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The arrival of fatigued brāhmaṇas foregrounds the dharma of hospitality (atithi-sevā) and reverence to the virtuous.

Which specific holy site (Tīrtha) is glorified here?

Not specified in this verse; it introduces the visiting ascetic/brāhmaṇa group within the tīrtha narrative.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit rite here; the implied dharma is to offer food, rest, and respect to weary guests.