Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 41

Devanagari script

यस्तत्र कुरुते स्नानं विधियुक्तो जितेन्द्रियः । तिलमिश्रेण तोयेन तर्पयेत्पितृदेवताः

Transliteration

yastatra kurute snānaṃ vidhiyukto jitendriyaḥ | tilamiśreṇa toyena tarpayetpitṛdevatāḥ

Translation

凡在彼处依仪轨沐浴、克制诸根者，应以和芝麻之水向祖灵（Pitṛ）与诸天奉献祭奠（tarpaṇa）。

Word by Word

• यः: who
• यः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्; सम्बन्धसूचक-यत् (relative pronoun)

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्ययम् (there)

• कुरुते: does/performs
• कुरुते: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुषः, एकवचनम्; आत्मनेपदम्

• स्नानम्: bath
• स्नानम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्नान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे द्वितीया-विभक्तिः (कर्म), एकवचनम्

• विधियुक्तः: following the prescribed rule
• विधियुक्तः: Karta (Subject qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: विधियुक्त (प्रातिपदिक) < विधि + युक्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्; कर्तृविशेषणम्—‘विधिना युक्तः’ (endowed with proper procedure)

• जितेन्द्रियः: one who has conquered his senses
• जितेन्द्रियः: Karta (Subject qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: जितेन्द्रिय (प्रातिपदिक) < जित (कृदन्त) + इन्द्रिय
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्; बहुव्रीहिः—‘जितानि इन्द्रियाणि यस्य सः’

• तिलमिश्रेण: mixed with sesame
• तिलमिश्रेण: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तिलमिश्र (प्रातिपदिक) < तिल + मिश्र
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे तृतीया-विभक्तिः (करण), एकवचनम्; विशेषणम्—तोयेन

• तोयेन: with water
• तोयेन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तोय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे तृतीया-विभक्तिः (करण), एकवचनम्

• तर्पयेत्: should satisfy/offer (libations to)
• तर्पयेत्: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: तृप् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुषः, एकवचनम्; परस्मैपदम्; causative sense in usage ‘to satisfy/offer libations’

• पितृदेवताः: the ancestral deities (pitṛs)
• पितृदेवताः: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृदेवता (प्रातिपदिक) < पितृ + देवता
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्गे द्वितीया-विभक्तिः (कर्म), बहुवचनम्; ‘पितॄणां देवताः’/‘पितृदेवतारूपाः’

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) (deduced from Āvantya Khaṇḍa narrative style)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Rudrakuṇḍa / Revā-tīrtha (implied)

Type: kund

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: General instruction (addressed within king-directed discourse)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A pilgrim, freshly bathed, stands facing the river/kuṇḍa, offering sesame-mixed water through cupped hands; subtle presence of pitṛs receiving; nearby a small shrine with lamps for devas.

Characters & Entities

• Pitṛs
• Devatās
• Tila (sesame)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Tīrtha-sevā is completed by disciplined conduct and Pitṛ-devatā worship, harmonizing personal purity with ancestral duty.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The ‘there’ refers to the praised tīrtha in this chapter—Śūlabheda and its associated sacred waters in Revā Khaṇḍa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Snāna (ritual bath) followed by tarpaṇa using water mixed with tila (sesame).