Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 77

Devanagari script

अल्पायुषस्तथा मर्त्या जायंते वर्णसंकरात् । ये केचन प्रजीवंति दुःखेन ते समन्विताः

Transliteration

alpāyuṣastathā martyā jāyaṃte varṇasaṃkarāt | ye kecana prajīvaṃti duḥkhena te samanvitāḥ

Translation

Do sự rối loạn giai tầng và pha tạp trật tự, phàm nhân sinh ra đoản thọ; kẻ nào còn gắng sống được thì cũng sống kèm theo khổ nhọc.

Word by Word

• alpāyuṣaḥ: short-lived
• alpāyuṣaḥ: Visheshana (Adjective)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: alpa (प्रातिपदिक) + āyus (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा-विभक्तिः (Nominative), बहुवचनम् (Plural); विशेषणम् (qualifier of martyāḥ)

• tathā: also
• tathā: Sambandha (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्ययम् (also/likewise)

• martyāḥ: mortals, people
• martyāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: martya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा-विभक्तिः (Nominative), बहुवचनम् (Plural)

• jāyante: are born, arise
• jāyante: Kriya (Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √jan (जन् धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकारः (Present), आत्मनेपदम्, प्रथम-पुरुषः (3rd person), बहुवचनम् (Plural)

• varṇa-saṃkarāt: from intermixture of castes/classes
• varṇa-saṃkarāt: Apadana/Hetu (Ablative cause)
• Type: Noun
• Root: varṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + saṃkara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गः, पञ्चमी-विभक्तिः (Ablative), एकवचनम् (Singular); हेतौ (from/because of)

• ye: who
• ye: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (यद् सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा-विभक्तिः (Nominative), बहुवचनम् (Plural); सम्बन्धक-सर्वनाम (relative pronoun)

• kecana: some (persons)
• kecana: Karta (Apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (किम् सर्वनाम) + cana (अव्यय-प्रत्यय)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा-विभक्तिः (Nominative), बहुवचनम् (Plural); अनिश्चितार्थक-सर्वनाम (indefinite: some)

• prajīvanti: live on, survive
• prajīvanti: Kriya (Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra-√jīv (जीव् धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकारः (Present), परस्मैपदम्, प्रथम-पुरुषः (3rd person), बहुवचनम् (Plural)

• duḥkhena: with suffering/difficulty
• duḥkhena: Karana (Instrument/Means)
• Type: Noun
• Root: duḥkha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गः, तृतीया-विभक्तिः (Instrumental), एकवचनम् (Singular); प्रकारे/सह (with difficulty)

• te: they
• te: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (तद् सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा-विभक्तिः (Nominative), बहुवचनम् (Plural); संकेत-सर्वनाम (demonstrative: they)

• samanvitāḥ: are accompanied (by it)
• samanvitāḥ: Karta (Predicate adjective)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sam-anu-√i (इ धातु) + kta (क्त)
• Form: कृदन्तः (क्त-प्रत्ययान्त), पुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा-विभक्तिः (Nominative), बहुवचनम् (Plural); ‘युक्त/समेत’ अर्थे (endowed/associated)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced; exact speaker not explicit in snippet)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A crowded town scene showing social confusion: mixed occupations and neglected rites, elders ignored, children frail; a symbolic hourglass or withering tree indicates shortened lifespan; a distant temple/tīrtha stands as the stabilizing axis.

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Dharma-protecting social responsibility sustains wellbeing; when it collapses, life becomes shorter and more burdened.

Which specific holy site (Tīrtha) is glorified here?

No tīrtha is named; the verse is part of a broader māhātmya warning about decline.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None.