Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 32

Devanagari script

निवातस्थौ यथा दीपावकम्पौ नृप तिष्ठतः । वासुदेवार्पणस्वस्थे तथैव मनसी तयोः

Transliteration

nivātasthau yathā dīpāvakampau nṛpa tiṣṭhataḥ | vāsudevārpaṇasvasthe tathaiva manasī tayoḥ

Translation

காற்றில்லா இடத்தில் நிற்கும் இரண்டு விளக்குகள் அசையாமல் இருப்பதுபோல், ஓ அரசே, வாசுதேவனுக்கான அர்ப்பணத்தில் நிலைத்த அவர்களின் மனங்களும் அசையாதவையாக இருந்தன।

Word by Word

• निवात-स्थौ: standing in a windless place
• निवात-स्थौ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: निवात (प्रातिपदिक) + स्थ (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक; √स्था)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), द्विवचनम्; सप्तमी-तत्पुरुषसमासः (निवाते स्थौ)

• यथा: as/just like
• यथा: Sambandha (Comparison/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम्; उपमानवाचकः (comparative)

• दीपौ: two lamps
• दीपौ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दीप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), द्विवचनम्

• अकम्पौ: unshaking/steady
• अकम्पौ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अ (नञ्) + कम्प (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), द्विवचनम्; नञ्-तत्पुरुषसमासः

• नृप: O king
• नृप: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नृप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गः, सम्बोधन (8th/vocative), एकवचनम्

• तिष्ठतः: stand/remain
• तिष्ठतः: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √स्था (धातु)
• Form: लट् (वर्तमान/Present), प्रथमपुरुषः (3rd person), द्विवचनम्; परस्मैपदम्

• वासुदेव-अर्पण-स्वस्थे: in the two minds, steady in offering to Vāsudeva
• वासुदेव-अर्पण-स्वस्थे: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वासुदेव (प्रातिपदिक) + अर्पण (प्रातिपदिक) + स्वस्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गः, सप्तमी (7th/अधिकरण), द्विवचनम्; बहुपद-तत्पुरुषसमासः; विशेषणम् (मनसी)

• तथा: so/likewise
• तथा: Sambandha (Adverbial/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम्; प्रकारवाचकः

• एव: indeed/just
• एव: Sambandha (Emphasis/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम्; अवधारणनिपातः (emphatic)

• मनसी: in (their) two minds
• मनसी: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मनस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गः, सप्तमी (7th/अधिकरण), द्विवचनम्

• तयोः: of the two
• तयोः: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), द्विवचनम्

Speaker

Narrator (addressing a king)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā (Narmadā)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Nṛpa (king)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Two steady lamps in a sheltered niche mirror two devotees seated in meditation; a subtle aura or flame motif aligns with their minds offered to Vāsudeva.

Characters & Entities

• Vāsudeva
• Nara
• Nārāyaṇa

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Dedication to Vāsudeva stabilizes the mind; devotion and inner stillness together defeat disturbance.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Revā Khaṇḍa setting frames the teaching; the verse itself glorifies the state of mind gained in sacred ascetic terrain rather than naming a single site.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Implied practice: vāsudevārpaṇa—offering one’s actions and mind to Vāsudeva (a bhakti discipline), though no formal rite is detailed.