Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 32

Devanagari script

गोपीचन्दनखंडं तु यो ददातीह वैष्णवे । कुलमेकोत्तरं तेन शतं तारितमेव वा

Transliteration

gopīcandanakhaṃḍaṃ tu yo dadātīha vaiṣṇave | kulamekottaraṃ tena śataṃ tāritameva vā

Translation

جو شخص یہاں کسی ویشنو بھکت کو گوپی چندن کا ایک ٹکڑا دان کرے، اس عمل سے اس کے خاندان کے ایک سو ایک افراد پار اُتار دیے جاتے ہیں۔

Word by Word

• gopīcandanakhaṇḍam: a piece of gopī-candana
• gopīcandanakhaṇḍam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gopī-candana-khaṇḍa (प्रातिपदिक; गोपी + चन्दन + खण्ड)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; Accusative singular

• tu: indeed/but
• tu: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय; विरोध/अवधारणार्थक निपात (particle ‘but/indeed’)

• yaḥ: who (he who)
• yaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; Nominative singular

• dadāti: gives
• dadāti: Kriyā (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dā (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; parasmaipada

• iha: here
• iha: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iha (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (adverb ‘here/in this world’)

• vaiṣṇave: to a Vaiṣṇava
• vaiṣṇave: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vaiṣṇava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी (4th/चतुर्थी), एकवचन; Dative singular

• kulam: family/lineage
• kulam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kula (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; Accusative singular

• ekottaram: one more (i.e., plus one)
• ekottaram: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: eka-uttara (प्रातिपदिक; एक + उत्तर)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; Accusative singular; संख्याविशेषण (numerical qualifier)

• tena: by him/through that (act)
• tena: Karana (Means/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन; Instrumental singular

• śatam: a hundred
• śatam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; Accusative singular (number)

• tāritam: saved/caused to cross over
• tāritam: Karmadhāraya/Predicate complement (विधेय)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tārita (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; √tṝ (धातु) + णिच् + क्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; past participle used predicatively (agreeing with śatam/kulam)

• eva: indeed
• eva: Sambandha (Emphasis/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारणार्थक निपात (emphatic particle ‘indeed/only’)

• vā: or
• vā: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vā (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय; विकल्पार्थक निपात (disjunctive particle ‘or’)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced from Dvārakā Māhātmya context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Dvārakā

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: A king (bhūpa/māhīpāla) addressed in the passage

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A pilgrim in Dvārakā offers a small lump of pale gopīcandana to a serene Vaiṣṇava devotee; behind them rise the sea, temple spires, and a saffron-flagged shrine; subtle ancestral figures appear as if being ‘carried across’ by divine grace.

Characters & Entities

• Gopīcandana
• Vaiṣṇava

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Charity offered to devotees using sacred items becomes a powerful generator of merit that uplifts one’s lineage.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Dvārakā is glorified indirectly through gopīcandana, treated as a sanctifier connected to Kṛṣṇa’s abode.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Dāna: giving a portion of gopīcandana to a Vaiṣṇava is prescribed as highly meritorious.