Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 52

Devanagari script

देवत्वं यानि सत्त्वेन रजसा च मनुष्यताम् । तिर्यक्त्वं तमसा जंतुर्वासनानुगतोवशः

Transliteration

devatvaṃ yāni sattvena rajasā ca manuṣyatām | tiryaktvaṃ tamasā jaṃturvāsanānugatovaśaḥ

Translation

由sattva得天神之境；由rajas得为人之身；由tamas则有身之众生堕入畜生之类——被vāsanā之牵引所迫而无自主。

Word by Word

• devatvam: godhood
• devatvam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: devatva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular; भाववाचक-तद्धितान्त (त्व)

• yāni: which (states)
• yāni: Sambandha (Relative/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Sarvanāma, Neuter, Nominative/Accusative (1st/2nd), Plural; correlating relative pronoun (‘which’)

• sattvena: by sattva
• sattvena: Karaṇa (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sattva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular

• rajasā: by rajas
• rajasā: Karaṇa (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rajas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Conjunction/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; conjunction (समुच्चयार्थक)

• manuṣyatām: human-ness
• manuṣyatām: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: manuṣyatā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular; भाववाचक-तद्धितान्त (तल्/तā)

• tiryaktvam: animal-ness (state of being a beast)
• tiryaktvam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tiryaktva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular; भाववाचक-तद्धितान्त (त्व)

• tamasā: by tamas
• tamasā: Karaṇa (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tamas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular

• jantuḥ: the creature
• jantuḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jantu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular

• vāsanā-anugataḥ: followed by latent impressions
• vāsanā-anugataḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vāsanā (प्रातिपदिक) + anugata (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (anugata = ‘followed’); समासः—तत्पुरुष (‘followed by vāsanā’)

• avaśaḥ: helpless/compelled
• avaśaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: avaśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular; विशेषणम्

Speaker

Ṛṣabha

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Three-tier tableau: devas above in luminous white (sattva), humans in the middle with red dynamism (rajas), animals below in shadowy black (tamas); vāsanā depicted as reins pulling the jīva across tiers.

Characters & Entities

• Ṛṣabha

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

One’s guṇa-dominance and vāsanās shape one’s destiny; cultivating sattva supports higher spiritual ascent.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No tīrtha is mentioned in this shloka.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit rite is stated; the implied discipline is guṇa-śuddhi—cultivating sattva through dharmic living.