Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 26

Devanagari script

तृणं वाथ मृगस्तत्र किं पुनर्भक्तिमान्नरः । यस्तत्र कुरुते श्राद्धं श्रद्धया फाल्गुने नरः

Transliteration

tṛṇaṃ vātha mṛgastatra kiṃ punarbhaktimānnaraḥ | yastatra kurute śrāddhaṃ śraddhayā phālgune naraḥ

Translation

หากแม้แต่หญ้าหรือกวาง ณ ที่นั้นยังได้รับอานิสงส์ แล้วมนุษย์ผู้มีภักติจะยิ่งเพียงใด! บุรุษผู้ประกอบพิธีศราทธ์ (Śrāddha) ณ ที่นั้นด้วยศรัทธาในเดือนผาลคุนะ—

Word by Word

• tṛṇam: grass
• tṛṇam: Karta (Subject; in ellipsis)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tṛṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular)

• vā: or
• vā: Vikalpa (Alternative)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vā (अव्यय)
• Form: विकल्प-अव्यय (or)

• atha: then/and also
• atha: Sambandha (Discourse connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atha (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (particle; sequence/transition)

• mṛgaḥ: a deer/animal
• mṛgaḥ: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mṛga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative), एकवचन (Singular)

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikaraṇa (Location)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक अव्यय (locative adverb)

• kim: what?
• kim: Prayojaka (Rhetorical interrogative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular); प्रश्नवाचक (interrogative)

• punar: again; moreover
• punar: Kriyā-viśeṣaṇa (Adverb)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: punar (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb)

• bhaktimān: devout; possessing devotion
• bhaktimān: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier of naraḥ)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bhakti (प्रातिपदिक) + mat (प्रत्यय)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); मतुप्-प्रत्ययान्त (possessive adjective)

• naraḥ: a man
• naraḥ: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative), एकवचन (Singular)

• yaḥ: who
• yaḥ: Karta (Subject of kurute)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); सम्बन्धक (relative pronoun)

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikaraṇa (Location)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक अव्यय

• kurute: does/performs
• kurute: Kriyā (Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kṛ (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular); आत्मनेपदम्

• śrāddham: śrāddha rite
• śrāddham: Karma (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śrāddha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), द्वितीया (Accusative), एकवचन (Singular)

• śraddhayā: with faith
• śraddhayā: Karaṇa (Instrument/means)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śraddhā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), तृतीया (Instrumental), एकवचन (Singular)

• phālgune: in (the month of) Phālguna
• phālgune: Adhikaraṇa (Time)
• Type: Noun
• Root: phālguna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine) / मासवाचकः; सप्तमी (Locative), एकवचन (Singular)

• naraḥ: the man
• naraḥ: Karta (Subject; appositional)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); पुनरुक्ति—सम्बोधन/उपसंहारार्थं

Speaker

Unspecified narrator within the Purāṇic frame

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra (śrāddha-sthāna within it)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: (Not shown in excerpt)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A devotee in simple garments prepares śrāddha offerings on kusa grass near a sacred precinct; deer and birds linger peacefully, suggesting the place’s influence on all beings; Phālguna’s gentle spring atmosphere pervades.

Characters & Entities

• Śrāddha
• Phālguna (month)
• Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra (context)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Tīrthas amplify religious acts; a faithful śrāddha performed at the right place and time yields exceptional ancestral benefit.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra tīrtha-region, where śrāddha is praised as especially efficacious.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Performing Śrāddha at that place, with faith, specifically in the month of Phālguna.