Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 37

Devanagari script

यथा गोदावरीयात्रा कर्तव्या मुनिशासनात् । चतुर्विंशतिमे वर्षे तथेयं देवभाषितम्

Transliteration

yathā godāvarīyātrā kartavyā muniśāsanāt | caturviṃśatime varṣe tatheyaṃ devabhāṣitam

Translation

ดังที่การจาริกไปยังโคทาวรีพึงกระทำตามบัญชาของฤๅษี ฉันใด พิธีปฏิบัตินี้—อันเหล่าเทวะประกาศ—ก็พึงกระทำในปีที่ยี่สิบสี่ ฉันนั้น

Word by Word

• yathā: just as / in the manner that
• yathā: Sambandha (correlative marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yathā (अव्यय)
• Form: Adverb/conjunction (यथार्थ-सम्बन्धे)

• godāvarīyātrā: the Godāvarī pilgrimage
• godāvarīyātrā: Karta (subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: godāvarī-yātrā (प्रातिपदिक; गोदावरी + यात्रा)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular; तत्पुरुष-समास (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः: गोदावर्याः यात्रा)

• kartavyā: to be done / must be performed
• kartavyā: Karta-predicate (obligation)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kṛ (धातु) → kartavya (कृदन्त)
• Form: Gerundive/obligatory participle (तव्यत्), Feminine, Nominative, Singular; agrees with yātrā

• muniśāsanāt: from the sage’s injunction
• muniśāsanāt: Hetu/Apadana (cause/source: ‘by/from the command’)
• Type: Noun
• Root: muni-śāsana (प्रातिपदिक; मुनि + शासन)
• Form: Neuter, Ablative (5th/पञ्चमी), Singular; तत्पुरुष-समास (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः: मुनेः शासनम्)

• caturviṃśatime: in the twenty-fourth
• caturviṃśatime: Adhikarana (time)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: caturviṃśatitama (प्रातिपदिक; चतुर्विंशति + तम)
• Form: Neuter, Locative (7th/सप्तमी), Singular; ordinal adjective agreeing with varṣe

• varṣe: year
• varṣe: Adhikarana (time)
• Type: Noun
• Root: varṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Locative (7th/सप्तमी), Singular

• tathā: so / likewise
• tathā: Sambandha (correlative marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: Adverb/correlative particle

• iyam: this (statement/teaching)
• iyam: Karta (subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular

• devabhāṣitam: spoken by the gods / divine utterance
• devabhāṣitam: Karta-predicate (qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: deva-bhāṣita (प्रातिपदिक; देव + भाषित)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त ‘bhāṣita’; तत्पुरुष-समास (देवेन भाषितम्) used predicatively with iyam (understood as ‘idam vacanam’)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced, Revā Khaṇḍa tīrtha-māhātmya narration)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā–Kumbheśvara (observance tied to cycle)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Sages instruct pilgrims beside a river; a symbolic wheel of time marked '24' appears, while a distant vignette shows Godāvarī pilgrimage as the model of rṣi-śāsana.

Characters & Entities

• Godāvarī

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Pilgrimage is not merely personal preference; it is a dhārmic act to be done in alignment with authoritative sacred instruction.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse references the Godāvarī pilgrimage as a benchmark while pointing to the Revā-region tīrtha being discussed in this chapter.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

A rule of observance: the yātrā/rite is to be performed as enjoined by sages, specifically noted for the twenty-fourth year.