Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 7

Devanagari script

एष एव परो धर्मो भूपतीनां विशेषतः । यथात्मीयं वचस्तथ्यं क्रियते निर्विकल्पितम्

Transliteration

eṣa eva paro dharmo bhūpatīnāṃ viśeṣataḥ | yathātmīyaṃ vacastathyaṃ kriyate nirvikalpitam

Translation

นี่แลคือธรรมอันสูงสุด โดยเฉพาะสำหรับพระราชา: คือเมื่อได้เปล่งวาจาเป็นสัตย์แล้ว ก็ต้องกระทำให้สำเร็จโดยไม่ลังเลและไม่คิดทางอื่น

Word by Word

• eṣaḥ: this
• eṣaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• eva: indeed, only
• eva: Visheshana (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (निश्चय/अवधारण)

• paraḥ: supreme
• paraḥ: Visheshana (Modifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: para (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषण

• dharmaḥ: dharma, duty
• dharmaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dharma (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• bhūpatīnām: of kings
• bhūpatīnām: Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhū-pati (प्रातिपदिक; भू + पति)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (सम्बन्ध), बहुवचन; समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः—'lords of the earth'

• viśeṣataḥ: especially
• viśeṣataḥ: Adhikarana (Manner)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: viśeṣatas (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (क्रियाविशेषण) — 'especially'

• yathā: as, in the manner that
• yathā: Sambandha (Correlative marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (यथार्थे/अनुपातबोधक)

• ātmīyam: one's own
• ātmīyam: Visheshana (Modifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ātmīya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण

• vacaḥ: word, promise
• vacaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vacas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• tathyam: true, truthful
• tathyam: Visheshana (Modifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tathya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषण

• kriyate: is done, is carried out
• kriyate: Kriya (Action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kṛ (धातु)
• Form: लट् (वर्तमान), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद; कर्मणि प्रयोगः (passive)

• nirvikalpitam: without doubt/hesitation
• nirvikalpitam: Adhikarana (Manner)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nir-vikalpita (प्रातिपदिक; निर् + विकल्पित)
• Form: क्त (भूतकृदन्त), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; क्रियाविशेषणवत्—'without hesitation/without alternative'

Speaker

Lakṣmaṇa (Saumitrī), inferred from immediate context

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A didactic tableau: Lakṣmaṇa instructs a kingly figure with steady gaze; the atmosphere shifts from grief to resolute calm, suggesting the moral axis of truth-keeping.

Characters & Entities

• Bhūpati (king)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

For rulers, truthfulness and unwavering fulfillment of one’s pledged word is presented as supreme dharma.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific tīrtha is named in this verse; it supports the moral frame within a tīrtha-māhātmya narrative.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; the verse teaches ethical duty (satya and resolve), not a ritual act.