Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 64

Devanagari script

यम उवाच । तीर्थयात्रापरो नित्यं देवतातिथिपूजकः । ब्रह्मण्यश्च शरण्यश्च न याति नरकं नरः

Transliteration

yama uvāca | tīrthayātrāparo nityaṃ devatātithipūjakaḥ | brahmaṇyaśca śaraṇyaśca na yāti narakaṃ naraḥ

Translation

యముడు పలికెను—ఎవడు నిత్యం తీర్థయాత్రాపరుడై, దేవతలను పూజించి అతిథులను సత్కరిస్తాడో, బ్రాహ్మణభక్తుడై శరణ్యుడై ఉంటాడో, అటువంటి మనిషి నరకానికి పోడు।

Word by Word

• यमः: Yama
• यमः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• उवाच: said
• उवाच: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच् (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथम-पुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular), परस्मैपद

• तीर्थयात्रापरः: devoted to pilgrimage to sacred places
• तीर्थयात्रापरः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तीर्थयात्रा (प्रातिपदिक) + पर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (तीर्थयात्रायां परः = devoted to pilgrimage)

• नित्यम्: always
• नित्यम्: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नित्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रियाविशेषण (adverb)

• देवताऽतिथिपूजकः: worshipper of deities and guests
• देवताऽतिथिपूजकः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देवता (प्रातिपदिक) + अतिथि (प्रातिपदिक) + पूजक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (देवताः च अतिथयः च तेषां पूजकः = worshipper of deities and guests)

• ब्रह्मण्यः: devoted to Brahmins/Brahman (pious)
• ब्रह्मण्यः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ब्रह्मण्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयबोधक-निपात (conjunction)

• शरण्यः: a refuge-giver; worthy of refuge
• शरण्यः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शरण्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयबोधक-निपात (conjunction)

• न: not
• न: Pratishedha (Negation/निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निषेध-निपात (negation particle)

• याति: goes
• याति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: या (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• नरकम्: hell
• नरकम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नरक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन

• नरः: a man
• नरः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

Speaker

Yama

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: A brāhmaṇa interlocutor (implied by adjacent address patterns in the passage)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Yama, the lord of dharma, speaks a calm injunction: a pilgrim with folded hands offers flowers to a deity, welcomes a guest with water and seat, and shelters a frightened traveler—while the shadow of hell recedes.

Characters & Entities

• Yama
• Tīrthayātrā
• Devatā
• Atithi

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Regular tīrtha-yātrā, reverence to gods, hospitality to guests, and protecting sacred dharma form a life that avoids the downward pull of sin.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No single site is named; the verse praises tīrthayātrā in general as a dharmic discipline celebrated throughout the Skanda Purāṇa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Practice pilgrimage (tīrtha-yātrā), worship deities (devatā-pūjā), and honor guests (atithi-pūjā) as ongoing disciplines.