Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 19

Devanagari script

यमोऽपि भवति प्रीतः प्रतिजन्म युधिष्ठिर । यमस्य वाहो महिषो महिष्यस्तस्य मातरः

Transliteration

yamo'pi bhavati prītaḥ pratijanma yudhiṣṭhira | yamasya vāho mahiṣo mahiṣyastasya mātaraḥ

Translation

اے یدھشٹھِر! جنم جنم میں یم بھی خوش ہوتا ہے۔ بھینسا یم کا واہن ہے، اور بھینسیں اس کی ماؤں کی مانند (قابلِ تعظیم) سمجھی جاتی ہیں۔

Word by Word

• यमः: Yama
• यमः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• अपि: also
• अपि: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय/अपि-अव्यय (particle: also/even)

• भवति: becomes/is
• भवति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• प्रीतः: pleased
• प्रीतः: Karta (Predicate complement/विशेष्य-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्रीत (प्रातिपदिक; √प्री-क्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past participle) विशेषण

• प्रतिजन्म: in every birth
• प्रतिजन्म: Adhikarana (Adverbial/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: प्रति + जन्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययीभाव-समास; क्रियाविशेषण (adverbial)

• युधिष्ठिर: O Yudhiṣṭhira
• युधिष्ठिर: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: युधि + स्थिर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन-विभक्ति, एकवचन; नाम (proper noun)

• यमस्य: of Yama
• यमस्य: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• वाहः: mount/vehicle
• वाहः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वाह (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• महिषः: a buffalo (male)
• महिषः: Karta (Predicate nominative/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महिष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• महिष्यः: she-buffaloes
• महिष्यः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महिषी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• तस्य: of that (of him)
• तस्य: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• मातरः: mothers
• मातरः: Karta (Predicate nominative/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मातृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

Speaker

Deductive: a Purāṇic narrator speaking to Yudhiṣṭhira.

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Yudhiṣṭhira

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Yama seated with daṇḍa and pāśa, his buffalo mount beside him; a gentle buffalo-cow is honored like a mother, while a donor offers reverence and gifts, indicating Yama’s pleasure across lifetimes.

Characters & Entities

• Yama
• Yudhiṣṭhira
• Mahiṣa (buffalo)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Acts connected to revered symbols (like Yama’s mount) are said to appease cosmic judges; reverence and dāna reshape karmic outcomes across lives.

Which specific holy site (Tīrtha) is glorified here?

This verse is doctrinal within Revā-khaṇḍa; it does not name a specific tīrtha.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Implicitly supports mahiṣī-dāna by explaining Yama’s connection to the buffalo and the reverence due to buffalo-cows.