Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 29

Devanagari script

यावद्वर्षसहस्रांतं फलाहारो बभूव ह । शीर्णपर्णाशनाहारो यावद्वर्षसहस्रकम्

Transliteration

yāvadvarṣasahasrāṃtaṃ phalāhāro babhūva ha | śīrṇaparṇāśanāhāro yāvadvarṣasahasrakam

Translation

ஆயிரம் ஆண்டுகள் அவன் பழங்களை மட்டும் உண்டு வாழ்ந்தான்; மேலும் இன்னொரு ஆயிரம் ஆண்டுகள் உதிர்ந்த இலைகளையே உணவாகக் கொண்டு வாழ்ந்தான்।

Word by Word

• यावत्: up to/as long as
• यावत्: Kriya-visheṣaṇa (Extent)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यावत् (अव्यय/सम्बन्ध-शब्द)
• Form: परिमाणवाचक-अव्यय (correlative: as long as/up to)

• वर्षसहस्रान्तम्: till the end of a thousand years
• वर्षसहस्रान्तम्: Kriya-visheṣaṇa (Duration/extent)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वर्ष (प्रातिपदिक) + सहस्र (प्रातिपदिक) + अन्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (‘वर्ष-सहस्र-अन्त’ = ‘end of a thousand years’), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; परिमाणे

• फलाहारः: one whose food was fruits
• फलाहारः: Karta/Predicate-noun (State)
• Type: Noun
• Root: फल (प्रातिपदिक) + आहार (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (‘फल-आहार’), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• बभूव: became/was
• बभूव: Kriya (Main verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• ह: indeed
• ह: Sambandha (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ह (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle; narrative emphasis)

• शीर्णपर्णाशनाहारः: one whose food was fallen leaves
• शीर्णपर्णाशनाहारः: Karta/Predicate-noun (State)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शीर्ण (कृदन्त, शॄ धातु) + पर्ण (प्रातिपदिक) + अशन्/अशन (प्रातिपदिक) + आहार (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: बहुपद-तत्पुरुष-समास (‘शीर्ण-पर्ण-अशन-आहार’ = ‘food consisting of eating fallen leaves’), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• यावत्: up to/as long as
• यावत्: Kriya-visheṣaṇa (Extent)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यावत् (अव्यय/सम्बन्ध-शब्द)
• Form: परिमाणवाचक-अव्यय (as long as/up to)

• वर्षसहस्रकम्: for a thousand years
• वर्षसहस्रकम्: Kriya-visheṣaṇa (Duration/extent)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वर्ष (प्रातिपदिक) + सहस्रक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: द्विगु-समास (संख्यापूर्व: ‘वर्ष-सहस्रक’ = ‘a thousand years’), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; परिमाणे

Speaker

Narrator (contextual Purāṇic narrator within Tīrthamāhātmya; exact speaker not explicit in this snippet)

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: (assembly of sages)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A time-lapse austerity tableau: Prahlāda under the same tree across ages—first with fruits offered by nature, later with only fallen leaves; seasons cycle around him while he remains unmoved.

Characters & Entities

• Andhaka

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Steadfast austerity is shown through long-term discipline in food and habits.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

A specific tīrtha is not named in this verse; it supports the broader Tīrthamāhātmya narrative context.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Dietary austerities (phalāhāra; then eating fallen leaves) are described as part of tapas.