Skanda Purana — Vishnu Khanda, Shloka 77

Devanagari script

ब्रह्मरूपं हरिं ध्यायञ्जपन्वै द्वादशाक्षरम् । वायुभक्षः स्थितस्तत्र विप्रस्त्रीन्वत्सरान्वसन्

Transliteration

brahmarūpaṃ hariṃ dhyāyañjapanvai dvādaśākṣaram | vāyubhakṣaḥ sthitastatra viprastrīnvatsarānvasan

Translation

బ్రహ్మస్వరూపుడైన హరిని ధ్యానిస్తూ, ద్వాదశాక్షర మంత్రాన్ని జపిస్తూ, ఆ బ్రాహ్మణుడు అక్కడ వాయుభక్షుడై మూడు సంవత్సరాలు నివసించాడు.

Word by Word

• brahma-rūpam: having the form of Brahman
• brahma-rūpam: Karma (Object-qualifier/कर्मविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक) + rūpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (षष्ठी), पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; Masculine, Accusative, Singular (विशेषण of harim)

• harim: Hari
• harim: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hari (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• dhyāyan: meditating
• dhyāyan: Karta (Agent-participle/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dhyai (धातु)
• Form: वर्तमान कृदन्त (शतृ), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; Present active participle, Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• japan: muttering/reciting
• japan: Karta (Agent-participle/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: jap (धातु)
• Form: वर्तमान कृदन्त (शतृ), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; Present active participle, Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• vai: indeed
• vai: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vai (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (अव्यय), अवधानार्थ/एवकारार्थ; Particle (emphatic)

• dvādaśa-akṣaram: the twelve-syllabled (mantra)
• dvādaśa-akṣaram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvādaśa (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक) + akṣara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: द्विगु-समास, नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• vāyu-bhakṣaḥ: one who subsists on air
• vāyu-bhakṣaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vāyu (प्रातिपदिक) + bhakṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (कर्म/उपपद), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• sthitaḥ: remaining/staying
• sthitaḥ: Karta (Predicate participle/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sthā (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (भूतकर्मणि/भूत), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; Past passive participle, Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय; Adverb of place

• vipraḥ: the brāhmaṇa
• vipraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vipra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• trīn: three
• trīn: Karma (Object-quantifier/कर्मविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tri (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, बहुवचन; Masculine, Accusative, Plural (विशेषण of vatsarān)

• vatsarān: years
• vatsarān: Kāla-adhikarana (Time extent/कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vatsara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, बहुवचन; Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• vasan: dwelling
• vasan: Karta (Agent-participle/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vas (धातु)
• Form: वर्तमान कृदन्त (शतृ), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; Present active participle, Masculine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

Narrator (contextual Purāṇic voice within Vaiṣṇavakhaṇḍa; speaker not explicit in the snippet)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Ayodhyā

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A Brahmin ascetic sits motionless in Ayodhyā, eyes half-closed, repeating the twelve-syllabled mantra; his body is lean from austerity, surrounded by still air and faint temple silhouettes.

Characters & Entities

• Hari
• Brahman
• Dvādaśākṣara (twelve-syllable mantra)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sustained mantra-japa and contemplation of Hari as the supreme Brahman, supported by austerity, is portrayed as a powerful path to divine grace.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The practice is situated within Ayodhyā Māhātmya, implying Ayodhyā as a favorable sacred setting for intense Vaiṣṇava tapas.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Dvādaśākṣara-mantra japa and severe tapas (vāyubhakṣa—subsisting on air) maintained for three years.