Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 18

Devanagari script

एवं मत्वा सदा मातुः कर्तव्या भक्तिरुत्तमैः । तमेनं परमं धर्मं प्रजापतिविनिर्मितम् । अनुतिष्ठंति ये पुत्रास्ते यांति परमां गतिम्

Transliteration

evaṃ matvā sadā mātuḥ kartavyā bhaktiruttamaiḥ | tamenaṃ paramaṃ dharmaṃ prajāpativinirmitam | anutiṣṭhaṃti ye putrāste yāṃti paramāṃ gatim

Translation

เมื่อเข้าใจดังนี้แล้ว ผู้ประเสริฐพึงปฏิบัติภักติอันสูงสุดต่อมารดาอยู่เสมอ นี่คือธรรมอันยิ่งใหญ่ที่พระปรชาบดีทรงสถาปนา บุตรผู้ดำเนินตามย่อมบรรลุคติสูงสุด

Word by Word

• evam: thus
• evam: Sambandha (Manner/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: evam (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रकारवाचक-अव्यय (adverb: thus)

• matvā: having considered
• matvā: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: √man (मन् धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund), अव्ययभाव

• sadā: always
• sadā: Sambandha (Time/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sadā (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (adverb: always)

• mātuḥ: of (one's) mother
• mātuḥ: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mātṛ (मातृ प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), एकवचन

• kartavyā: should be done
• kartavyā: Visheshana (Predicate adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √kṛ (कृ धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त (तव्यत्—कर्तव्य), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विधेय-विशेषण (to be done)

• bhaktiḥ: devotion
• bhaktiḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhakti (भक्ति प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• uttamaiḥ: by the best (people)
• uttamaiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: uttama (उत्तम प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), बहुवचन; साधन/कर्तृवाचक प्रयोग (by the best people)

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

• enam: this (same)
• enam: Karma (Appositional object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (इदम् सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (एतदर्थे ‘एनम्’)

• paramam: supreme
• paramam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: parama (परम प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• dharmam: duty/dharma
• dharmam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dharma (धर्म प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• prajāpati-vinirmitam: created by Prajāpati
• prajāpati-vinirmitam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: prajāpati (प्रजापति प्रातिपदिक) + vinirmita (विनिर्मित प्रातिपदिक; √mā (मा) with vi+nir उपसर्ग)
• Form: कृदन्त (क्त—निर्मित), पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (प्रजापतिना विनिर्मितः)

• anutiṣṭhanti: practice/observe
• anutiṣṭhanti: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: anu-√sthā (स्था धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन

• ye: who
• ye: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (यद् सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन (relative pronoun)

• putrāḥ: sons
• putrāḥ: Karta (Apposition/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: putra (पुत्र प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• te: they
• te: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (तद् सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन (correlative pronoun)

• yānti: go/attain
• yānti: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √yā (या धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन

• paramām: supreme
• paramām: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: parama (परम प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• gatim: state/goal
• gatim: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gati (गति प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

Speaker

Narrator (didactic conclusion within the episode)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A sage-like narrator or elder instructs: ‘Prajāpati-made dharma’; behind, a symbolic Prajāpati/creator figure inscribing dharma; foreground shows a son serving his mother (offering water/food).

Characters & Entities

• Mother (Mātā)
• Prajāpati

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Mātṛ-bhakti is declared a ‘parama dharma’; practicing it is said to lead to the highest spiritual attainment.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse itself does not specify a site; it functions as a universal dharma teaching within a tīrtha-māhātmya chapter.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

A standing prescription of conduct: consistent devotion/service to the mother (mātṛ-sevā), rather than a particular pilgrimage rite.