Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 45

Devanagari script

अङ्कुल्लमूले यः पिण्डं पित्ःनुद्दिश्य दापयेत् । तस्य ते द्वादशाब्दानि तृप्तिं यान्ति पितामहाः

Transliteration

aṅkullamūle yaḥ piṇḍaṃ pitḥnuddiśya dāpayet | tasya te dvādaśābdāni tṛptiṃ yānti pitāmahāḥ

Translation

அங்குள்ள மரத்தின் அடியில் பித்ருக்களை நோக்கி பிண்டதானம் செய்யச் செய்பவன், அவனுடைய பிதாமகர்கள் பன்னிரண்டு ஆண்டுகள் திருப்தி அடைவர்।

Word by Word

• अङ्कुल्लमूले: at the root of the aṅkulla (tree/plant)
• अङ्कुल्लमूले: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अङ्कुल्ल-मूल (प्रातिपदिक; समास)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (7th/Locative), एकवचन; अङ्कुल्लस्य मूलम् इति षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः

• यः: who
• यः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• पिण्डम्: rice-ball offering (piṇḍa)
• पिण्डम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पिण्ड (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• पितॄन्: to the ancestors (fathers)
• पितॄन्: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative), बहुवचन

• उद्दिश्य: having dedicated (to)
• उद्दिश्य: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: उद्-√दिश् (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (Gerund/Absolutive), ‘उद्दिश्य’ = having intended/addressed

• दापयेत्: should cause (it) to be given / should offer
• दापयेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √दा (धातु) [णिच् causative]
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद; णिच्-प्रयोगः

• तस्य: of him
• तस्य: Sambandha (Possessor/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (6th/Genitive), एकवचन

• ते: those (they)
• ते: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

• द्वादशाब्दानि: twelve years
• द्वादशाब्दानि: Kala-adhikarana (Time extent/काल)
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्वादश-अब्द (प्रातिपदिक; समास)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative), बहुवचन; द्विगु-समासः (द्वादश + अब्द)

• तृप्तिम्: satisfaction
• तृप्तिम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तृप्ति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• यान्ति: attain
• यान्ति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √या (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन; परस्मैपद

• पितामहाः: grandfathers/forefathers
• पितामहाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितामह (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

Speaker

Unspecified (Revākhaṇḍa narrator)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Aṅkullamūla-tīrtha (within Revā/Kusumeśa context)

Type: ghat

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Yudhiṣṭhira

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A pilgrim at the base of a sacred tree beside a riverbank tīrtha offers rice-balls (piṇḍa) with water-libations; subtle ancestral figures receive satisfaction in the background.

Characters & Entities

• Aṅkulla (tree/place-marker)
• Pitṛs
• Pitāmahāḥ (forefathers)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Place-specific śrāddha done with dedication to the Pitṛs yields enduring ancestral satisfaction.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kusumeśa-tīrtha area, with a localized sacred spot identified as the Aṅkulla tree-root.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Offer (or arrange the offering of) a piṇḍa at the Aṅkulla tree-root, dedicating it to the Pitṛs.