Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 104

Devanagari script

अहोरात्रोपवासेन विधिवत्तां विसर्जयेत् । या सा यमपुरे घोरे नदी वैतरणी स्मृता

Transliteration

ahorātropavāsena vidhivattāṃ visarjayet | yā sā yamapure ghore nadī vaitaraṇī smṛtā

Translation

ครั้นอดอาหารตลอดวันและคืนแล้ว พึงกระทำให้ทาน “ติละ-เธนุ” นั้นสมบูรณ์และถวายตามพิธีอันถูกต้อง ทานนั้นแลเป็นที่ระลึกว่าเป็นแม่น้ำไวตระณีอันน่ากลัวในนครของยมะ—เป็นเครื่องให้ข้ามพ้นได้

Word by Word

• अहोरात्रोपवासेन: by the day-and-night fast
• अहोरात्रोपवासेन: Karaṇa (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अहोरात्र + उपवास (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन; समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (अहोरात्रस्य उपवासः)

• विधिवत्: according to rule, duly
• विधिवत्: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: विधि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकारवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (adverb of manner)

• ताम्: her/that (river)
• ताम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• विसर्जयेत्: should cross/let go, should pass beyond
• विसर्जयेत्: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: विसृज् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative/विधिलिङ्), परस्मैपदम्, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person/प्रथमपुरुष), एकवचन

• या: which
• या: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; सम्बन्धसूचक सर्वनाम

• सा: that
• सा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; निर्देशार्थ सर्वनाम

• यमपुरे: in Yama’s city
• यमपुरे: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यमपुर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन; समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (यमस्य पुरम्)

• घोरे: terrible
• घोरे: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: घोर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (यमपुरे)

• नदी: river
• नदी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नदी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन

• वैतरणी: Vaitaraṇī (name of the river)
• वैतरणी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वैतरणी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; नदी-नाम

• स्मृता: is called/remembered as
• स्मृता: Kriyā (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्मृ (धातु) + त (कृत्-प्रत्यय)
• Form: कृदन्तः भूतकर्मणि/भूतकृत् (past passive participle); स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्मणि प्रयोगे विधेय-विशेषणम् (नदी)

Speaker

Narratorial voice within Revā Khaṇḍa (exact speaker not in snippet)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā (Narmadā) tīrtha (contextual)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Bhārata (addressed)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A votary, after a day-night fast, ritually ‘releases’ a sesame-made cow (tila-dhenu) as dāna; in the subtle background, the dread river Vaitaraṇī is shown as being crossed by the merit of the gift.

Characters & Entities

• Yama
• Vaitaraṇī

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Disciplined vow (fasting) joined with properly performed charity becomes a saving support in the afterlife, symbolically enabling passage beyond Yama’s terrors.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The immediate imagery is Yama’s realm (not a terrestrial tīrtha); the broader chapter remains within Revā/Narmadā Māhātmya.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

A full day-and-night fast (ahorātra-upavāsa) followed by the rule-bound completion/donation (visarjana) of the prescribed gift (contextually, tila-dhenu).