Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 86

Devanagari script

स्नानेन पिंडदानेन पितॄणां तर्पणे कृते । तृप्तिर्भवति भूपाल तथा गोमतिदर्शनात्

Transliteration

snānena piṃḍadānena pitṝṇāṃ tarpaṇe kṛte | tṛptirbhavati bhūpāla tathā gomatidarśanāt

Translation

நீராடுதல், பிண்டதானம் செய்தல், பித்ருக்களுக்குத் தர்ப்பணம் செய்தல் ஆகியவற்றால் திருப்தி உண்டாகிறது, அரசே; அதுபோல கோமதியின் தரிசனத்தாலும் திருப்தி கிடைக்கிறது.

Word by Word

• स्नानेन: by bathing
• स्नानेन: Karana (Instrument/Means—करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्नान (प्रातिपदिक; √स्ना स्नाने)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन

• पिण्डदानेन: by offering piṇḍas (funeral rice-balls)
• पिण्डदानेन: Karana (Instrument/Means—करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पिण्ड (प्रातिपदिक) + दान (प्रातिपदिक; √दा दाने)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन; समासः—पिण्डस्य दानम्

• पितॄणाम्: of the ancestors
• पितॄणाम्: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), बहुवचन

• तर्पणे: in/at the act of tarpaṇa (libation)
• तर्पणे: Adhikarana (Context/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तर्पण (प्रातिपदिक; √तृप् तर्पणे)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; ‘तर्पणे कृते’ = तर्पणकर्मणि सम्पन्ने

• कृते: when (it is) done
• कृते: Adhikarana (Temporal circumstance/सति-सप्तमी)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कृत (कृदन्त; √कृ करणे)
• Form: सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन, नपुंसकलिङ्ग; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त; ‘तर्पणे’ इत्यनेन सह सति-सप्तमी (when tarpaṇa is done)

• तृप्तिः: satisfaction
• तृप्तिः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तृप्ति (प्रातिपदिक; √तृप् तृप्तौ)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• भवति: arises/occurs
• भवति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √भू (धातु; भवने)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• भूपाल: O king
• भूपाल: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भूपाल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/Vocative), एकवचन; समासः—भूः पालः (king)

• तथा: likewise
• तथा: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रकारवाचक-अव्यय (adverb: likewise/so)

• गोमतिदर्शनात्: from/by seeing the Gomati
• गोमतिदर्शनात्: Apadana (Cause/Source—ablative/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गोमती (प्रातिपदिक) + दर्शन (प्रातिपदिक; √दृश् दर्शने)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/Ablative), एकवचन; समासः—गोमत्याः दर्शनम्

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Prabhāsa-khaṇḍa, Dvārakā-māhātmya narration style)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Gomatī (Dvārakā)

Type: ghat

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Bhūpāla (the king addressed)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: On the sandy bank of the Gomati, a devotee performs tarpaṇa with cupped hands, offering water with sesame; nearby, piṇḍas are placed on darbha; the river glows as a goddess-like presence, while a king listens to the teaching.

Characters & Entities

• Pitṛs
• Gomatī
• bhūpāla (king)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Tīrtha power can amplify or even match the fruits of elaborate rites; sacred places support dharma with accessible means.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Gomati river is exalted—its mere darśana is said to confer a profound ritual fruit.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Snāna (bathing), piṇḍa-dāna (ancestral offering), and tarpaṇa (libations) for Pitṛs.