Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 45

Devanagari script

न्यवर्तयत्काश्यपं तं ब्राह्मणं मंत्रको विदम् । अल्पायुषं नृपं मत्वा ज्ञानदृष्ट्या स काश्यपः

Transliteration

nyavartayatkāśyapaṃ taṃ brāhmaṇaṃ maṃtrako vidam | alpāyuṣaṃ nṛpaṃ matvā jñānadṛṣṭyā sa kāśyapaḥ

Translation

ดังนั้น กาศยปะ พราหมณ์ผู้ชำนาญมนตร์ จึงหันกลับไป เพราะด้วยทิพยญาณแห่งความรู้ เขาเห็นว่าพระราชานั้นมีอายุสั้น

Word by Word

• nyavartayat: sent back/turned back
• nyavartayat: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vṛt (धातु √वृत्, वर्तने; नि-उपसर्ग; णिच् causative)
• Form: लङ् (Imperfect/past); परस्मैपद; प्रथमपुरुष (3rd); एकवचन; causative (न्यवर्तयत् = caused to return/turned back)

• kāśyapam: Kāśyapa
• kāśyapam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāśyapa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative); एकवचन

• tam: that (him)
• tam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative); एकवचन

• brāhmaṇam: the brāhmaṇa
• brāhmaṇam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brāhmaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative); एकवचन; apposition to kāśyapam

• maṃtrakovidam: skilled in mantras
• maṃtrakovidam: Visheshana (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mantra-kovida (प्रातिपदिक; mantra + kovida)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative); एकवचन; विशेषण (brāhmaṇam/kāśyapam)

• alpāyuṣam: short-lived
• alpāyuṣam: Visheshana (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: alpa-āyus (प्रातिपदिक; alpa + āyus)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative); एकवचन; विशेषण (nṛpam)

• nṛpam: the king
• nṛpam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nṛpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative); एकवचन

• matvā: having considered
• matvā: Kriya (पूर्वक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: man (धातु √मन्, ज्ञाने; absolutive)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund); पूर्वकालिक क्रिया (having considered/knowing)

• jñānadṛṣṭyā: by the vision of knowledge
• jñānadṛṣṭyā: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jñāna-dṛṣṭi (प्रातिपदिक; jñāna + dṛṣṭi)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental); एकवचन; करण

• saḥ: he
• saḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st/Nominative); एकवचन

• kāśyapaḥ: Kāśyapa
• kāśyapaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāśyapa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st/Nominative); एकवचन

Speaker

Narrator (Purāṇic narrator, contextually Sūta)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Setukṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Sages/pilgrims

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Kāśyapa turns away from the path, holding or leaving behind jewels; his gaze is inward, seeing the king’s short lifespan as a faint vision—like a dim lamp about to go out—while the sea horizon suggests time’s vastness.

Characters & Entities

• Kāśyapa
• King Parīkṣit

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Even knowledge of outcomes (fate) can influence choices; the verse raises the dharmic tension between insight, duty, and desire.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No tīrtha is specified in this verse; it is an ethical-fate episode embedded in Setu-khaṇḍa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; the verse emphasizes jñānadṛṣṭi (gnostic insight) and decision.