Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 8

Devanagari script

ब्रह्मशालोपविष्टानां यदि वाक्यं वृथा भवेत् । माहात्म्यं नश्यते तेषां ततः क्रोधः प्रजायते

Transliteration

brahmaśālopaviṣṭānāṃ yadi vākyaṃ vṛthā bhavet | māhātmyaṃ naśyate teṣāṃ tataḥ krodhaḥ prajāyate

Translation

若坐于梵摩室（Brahmaśālā）者之言成为空虚或虚妄，则其“摩诃阿特弥亚”（灵威、圣德）将毁灭；由此便生嗔怒。

Word by Word

• brahmaśālā-upaviṣṭānām: of those seated in the brahma-hall
• brahmaśālā-upaviṣṭānām: Ṣaṣṭhī-sambandha (Genitive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahmaśālā (प्रातिपदिक) + upaviṣṭa (उप-वि-षद्/सीद्-धातु, क्त-प्रत्यय; कृदन्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), बहुवचनम्; समासः = तत्पुरुष (ब्रह्मशालायाम् उपविष्टाः = seated in the brahma-hall)

• yadi: if
• yadi: Śarthe (Condition marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yadi (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (शर्त/निबन्ध) = conditional particle ‘if’

• vākyam: speech/statement
• vākyam: Kartā (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vākya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचनम्

• vṛthā: in vain
• vṛthā: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial modifier)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vṛthā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (क्रियाविशेषण) = ‘in vain/fruitlessly’

• bhavet: should be/becomes
• bhavet: Kriyā (Predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: bhū (भू-धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुषः (3rd), एकवचनम्; परस्मैपदम्

• māhātmyam: the sanctity/glory
• māhātmyam: Kartā (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: māhātmya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचनम्

• naśyate: is destroyed/perishes
• naśyate: Kriyā (Predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: naś (नश्-धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुषः (3rd), एकवचनम्; आत्मनेपदम्

• teṣām: of them
• teṣām: Ṣaṣṭhī-sambandha (Genitive)
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), बहुवचनम्

• tataḥ: then, from that
• tataḥ: Kārya-kāraṇa/Anantarya (Result marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (परिणाम/अनन्तर) = ‘thereupon/then’

• krodhaḥ: anger
• krodhaḥ: Kartā (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: krodha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचनम्

• prajāyate: arises/is produced
• prajāyate: Kriyā (Predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra-jan (प्र-जन्-धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुषः (3rd), एकवचनम्; आत्मनेपदम्

Speaker

Bhartṛyajña

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: participants of the Brahmaśālā (brāhmaṇa assembly)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Brāhmaṇas seated in a consecrated hall; a subtle darkening aura as words turn futile; the hall’s radiance wanes, and anger begins to rise in faces and gestures.

Characters & Entities

• Brahmaśālā
• māhātmya
• krodha (anger)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sacred authority depends on truthful, effective speech; when truth collapses, spiritual standing falls and anger follows.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Brahmaśālā is upheld as a sanctified locus of dharma whose ‘māhātmya’ must not be undermined.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

An implicit prescription: ensure Brahmaśālā pronouncements are not made ‘in vain’—maintain truth and due process to preserve māhātmya.