Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 17

Devanagari script

इक्ष्वाकुवंशजः श्रीमान्राजा परम धार्मिकः । आसीन्मित्रसहोनाम श्रेष्ठः सर्वधनुर्भृताम्

Transliteration

ikṣvākuvaṃśajaḥ śrīmānrājā parama dhārmikaḥ | āsīnmitrasahonāma śreṣṭhaḥ sarvadhanurbhṛtām

Translation

اِکشواکو وَنش میں ایک جلیل القدر، نہایت دھارمک بادشاہ تھا؛ اُس کا نام مِترسہا تھا، اور وہ تمام کمان برداروں میں سب سے برتر تھا۔

Word by Word

• ikṣvāku-vaṃśa-jaḥ: born in Ikṣvāku’s lineage
• ikṣvāku-vaṃśa-jaḥ: Visheshana (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ikṣvāku (प्रातिपदिक) + vaṃśa (प्रातिपदिक) + ja (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (ikṣvākūnāṃ vaṃśe jātaḥ)

• śrīmān: glorious / illustrious
• śrīmān: Visheshana (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śrīmat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; मतुप्-प्रत्ययान्त विशेषण

• rājā: king
• rājā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rājan (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• paramaḥ: supreme / very
• paramaḥ: Visheshana (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: parama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषण

• dhārmikaḥ: righteous
• dhārmikaḥ: Visheshana (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dhārmika (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषण

• āsīt: was
• āsīt: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: as (धातु)
• Form: लङ् (Imperfect/Past), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• mitra-sahaḥ: Mitra-saha (proper name)
• mitra-sahaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mitra (प्रातिपदिक) + saha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; उपपद-तत्पुरुष/षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (mitraiḥ saha/mitrasya sahaḥ) — नामरूपेण

• nāma: by name
• nāma: Sambandha (Apposition marker/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: nāman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय; नामार्थक-निपात (indeclinable used as "by name")

• śreṣṭhaḥ: best / foremost
• śreṣṭhaḥ: Visheshana (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śreṣṭha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषण

• sarva-dhanur-bhṛtām: of all bow-bearers
• sarva-dhanur-bhṛtām: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक) + dhanus (प्रातिपदिक) + bhṛt (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (dhanur-bhṛt = धनुर्धर), sarva- (समस्त)

Speaker

Deductive: Purāṇic narrator within Brahmottarakhaṇḍa (likely Sūta-style narration to sages)

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Audience of the Purāṇic discourse

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A noble Ikṣvāku king, Mitrasaha, stands with bow, regal yet composed; court and standards behind him, suggesting dharma and martial excellence.

Characters & Entities

• Ikṣvāku
• Mitrasaha

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Purāṇas ground dharma teachings in exemplary royal lives, linking devotion with rāja-dharma.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No site is mentioned; the verse begins a royal narrative.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None in this verse; it introduces the protagonist for the forthcoming dharma account.