Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 64

Devanagari script

स्वदत्तां परदत्तां वा यो हरेत वसुंधराम् । स विष्ठायां कृमिर्भूत्वा पितृभिः सह मज्जति

Transliteration

svadattāṃ paradattāṃ vā yo hareta vasuṃdharām | sa viṣṭhāyāṃ kṛmirbhūtvā pitṛbhiḥ saha majjati

Translation

ผู้ใดฉกชิงวสุธรา ไม่ว่าที่ตนให้หรือผู้อื่นให้ ผู้นั้นย่อมเป็นหนอนในอุจจาระ และจมอยู่ที่นั่นพร้อมกับปิตฤทั้งหลาย

Word by Word

• sva-dattām: (land) given by oneself
• sva-dattām: Karma (Object qualifier/कर्म-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sva (स्व) + datta (दा धातोः क्त)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; समासः तत्पुरुष (स्वेन दत्ताम्)

• para-dattām: (land) given by another
• para-dattām: Karma (Object qualifier/कर्म-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: para (पर) + datta (दा धातोः क्त)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; समासः तत्पुरुष (परेण दत्ताम्)

• vā: or
• vā: Sambandha (Alternative/विकल्प)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vā (अव्यय)
• Form: विकल्पार्थक निपात

• yaḥ: who
• yaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (यद् सर्वनाम)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• haret: would take away / steal
• haret: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: hṛ (हृ धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• vasuṃdharām: the earth/land
• vasuṃdharām: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vasuṃdharā (वसुंधरा प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• saḥ: he
• saḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (तद् सर्वनाम)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• viṣṭhāyām: in excrement
• viṣṭhāyām: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viṣṭhā (विष्ठा प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन

• kṛmiḥ: a worm
• kṛmiḥ: Karta (Predicate nominative/प्रथमा-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṛmi (कृमि प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• bhūtvā: having become
• bhūtvā: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Verb
• Root: bhū (भू धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्यय (absolutive/gerund): having become

• pitṛbhiḥ: with the ancestors
• pitṛbhiḥ: Sahakari (Association/सह)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pitṛ (पितृ प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/सह-करण), बहुवचन

• saha: together with
• saha: Sahakari (Association/सह)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: saha (अव्यय)
• Form: सहार्थक अव्यय (postposition-like: with)

• majjati: sinks / is immersed
• majjati: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: majj (मज्ज् धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

Speaker

Unspecified (Revākhaṇḍa narrative voice; likely Sūta/Lomaharṣaṇa in Purāṇic framing)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā (Narmadā) tīrtha sphere (contextual)

Type: river

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A land-seizer is shown falling into a filthy pit, reborn as a worm; shadowy ancestors appear, dragged down by association, emphasizing pitṛ-implication.

Characters & Entities

• Pitṛs (ancestors)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Taking back or stealing land, especially donated land, is a severe adharma that brings ruin to oneself and one’s lineage.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The setting belongs to Revākhaṇḍa (the sacred Revā/Narmadā region), but the verse itself is a dharma-warning rather than a tirtha-praise.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it is a prohibition against land-seizure and a statement of its karmic consequence.