Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 77

Devanagari script

पितृगोत्रे मृता ये वै मातृपक्षे च ये मृताः । तेषामत्र कृतः पिंडो भवेदक्षयतृप्तिदः

Transliteration

pitṛgotre mṛtā ye vai mātṛpakṣe ca ye mṛtāḥ | teṣāmatra kṛtaḥ piṃḍo bhavedakṣayatṛptidaḥ

Translation

ผู้ที่ตายในสายตระกูลฝ่ายบิดา และผู้ที่ตายในฝ่ายมารดา—เมื่อถวายปิณฑะ ณ ที่นี้เพื่อเขาแล้ว ย่อมเป็นผู้ประทานความอิ่มเอิบอันไม่เสื่อมสลาย

Word by Word

• पितृगोत्रे: in the paternal lineage
• पितृगोत्रे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृगोत्र (प्रातिपदिक; पितृ + गोत्र)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; Locative singular

• मृताः: dead
• मृताः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मृत (कृदन्त; मृ धातु, क्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (PPP)

• ये: who
• ये: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; Relative pronoun, nominative plural

• वै: indeed
• वै: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वै (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात (emphatic particle)

• मातृपक्षे: in the maternal side
• मातृपक्षे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मातृपक्ष (प्रातिपदिक; मातृ + पक्ष)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; Locative singular

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय-बोधक (conjunction)

• ये: who
• ये: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; Relative pronoun, nominative plural

• मृताः: dead
• मृताः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मृत (कृदन्त; मृ धातु, क्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; PPP

• तेषाम्: of them
• तेषाम्: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; Genitive plural

• अत्र: here
• अत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक (adverb)

• कृतः: made, performed
• कृतः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कृत (कृदन्त; कृ धातु, क्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; PPP; qualifying पिण्डः

• पिण्डः: piṇḍa offering (rice-ball)
• पिण्डः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पिण्ड (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; Nominative singular

• भवेत्: would be, becomes
• भवेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (सम्भावना/आज्ञा), परस्मैपद, प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन; Optative, 3rd singular

• अक्षयतृप्तिदः: giver of imperishable satisfaction
• अक्षयतृप्तिदः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अक्षय + तृप्ति + द (प्रातिपदिक; अक्षय-विशेषण + तृप्ति + द(दातृ))
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः; qualifying पिण्डः

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda speaking to Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A priest recites sankalpa naming father’s line and mother’s line; two streams of offerings (water and piṇḍa) symbolically flow to both lineages, depicted as calm ancestral figures receiving light.

Characters & Entities

• Skanda
• Piṇḍa
• Pitṛ-gotra
• Mātṛ-pakṣa
• Kāśī (Vārāṇasī)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Dharma includes honoring both paternal and maternal ancestors, and Kāśī magnifies that offering into akṣaya benefit.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse refers to the ‘here’ of Kāśī’s śrāddha-tīrtha circuit described in Adhyāya 12.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Offering piṇḍa for ancestors from both lineages, with the promise of akṣaya-tṛpti.