Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 26

Devanagari script

कुर्य्यात्स्नानं तथा दानं पितॄणां तर्पणं तथा । पञ्चकासु द्विजश्रेष्ठास्तथा चैवाष्टकासु च

Transliteration

kuryyātsnānaṃ tathā dānaṃ pitṝṇāṃ tarpaṇaṃ tathā | pañcakāsu dvijaśreṣṭhāstathā caivāṣṭakāsu ca

Translation

Bậc tối thượng trong hàng hai lần sinh hãy thực hành tắm gội, bố thí và lễ tarpaṇa dâng lên tổ tiên—trong các ngày Pañcakā, và cũng như thế trong các kỳ Aṣṭakā.

Word by Word

• kuryāt: should do
• kuryāt: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kṛ (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन

• snānam: bath
• snānam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: snāna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• tathā: likewise
• tathā: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषण-अव्यय (adverb)

• dānam: gift/charity
• dānam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dāna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• pitṝṇām: of the ancestors
• pitṝṇām: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pitṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), बहुवचन

• tarpaṇam: libation/satiation-offering
• tarpaṇam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tarpaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• tathā: likewise
• tathā: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषण-अव्यय (adverb)

• pañcakāsu: on the pañcakā days
• pañcakāsu: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pañcakā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), बहुवचन; तिथि-समूह-नाम

• dvijaśreṣṭhāḥ: best of the twice-born (Brahmins)
• dvijaśreṣṭhāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvija (प्रातिपदिक) + śreṣṭha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (dvijānāṃ śreṣṭhāḥ)

• tathā: likewise
• tathā: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषण-अव्यय (adverb)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• eva: indeed
• eva: Sambandha (Emphasis/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (emphatic particle)

• āṣṭakāsu: on the āṣṭakā days
• āṣṭakāsu: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: āṣṭakā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), बहुवचन; तिथि-नाम

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced from Dvārakā Māhātmya discourse context)

Characters & Entities

• Pitṛs (ancestors)
• Pañcakā
• Aṣṭakā
• Dvija (twice-born)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Right timing (specific observance days) strengthens dharmic acts like bathing, charity, and ancestral offerings.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Within the ongoing Dvārakā Māhātmya praise of the Gomātī–ocean confluence, though this verse emphasizes calendrical observances.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Snāna, dāna, and pitṛ-tarpaṇa to be performed on Pañcakā and Aṣṭakā days.