Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 52

Devanagari script

गयाश्राद्धं करोत्येकः पितृपक्षे नृपोत्तम । पश्यत्यन्यो हृषीकेशं चातुर्मास्यं समाहितः

Transliteration

gayāśrāddhaṃ karotyekaḥ pitṛpakṣe nṛpottama | paśyatyanyo hṛṣīkeśaṃ cāturmāsyaṃ samāhitaḥ

Translation

大王啊，有人在祖灵半月（Pitṛpakṣa）行伽耶施罗陀（Gayā-śrāddha）之祭；另有人一心专注，于四月斋期（Cāturmāsya）得瞻礼赫利希凯沙（Hṛṣīkeśa）——此被宣说为更高的功德。

Word by Word

• gayāśrāddham: the Gayā śrāddha rite
• gayāśrāddham: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gayā-śrāddha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; समासः—गया + श्राद्ध (गयायां कृतं श्राद्धम्)

• karoti: does, performs
• karoti: Kriyā (मुख्यक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kṛ (कृ धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• ekaḥ: one (person)
• ekaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: eka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• pitṛpakṣe: in the fortnight of the ancestors (Pitṛpakṣa)
• pitṛpakṣe: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pitṛ-pakṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (7th/Locative), एकवचन; समासः—पितृ + पक्ष (पितॄणां पक्षः)

• nṛpottama: O best of kings
• nṛpottama: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nṛpa-uttama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन-विभक्ति (8th/Vocative), एकवचन; समासः—नृप + उत्तम (श्रेष्ठो नृपः)

• paśyati: sees
• paśyati: Kriyā (मुख्यक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dṛś (दृश् धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• anyaḥ: another (person)
• anyaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: anya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• hṛṣīkeśam: Hṛṣīkeśa
• hṛṣīkeśam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hṛṣīkeśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• cāturmāsyam: the four-month period
• cāturmāsyam: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (काल/अवधि)
• Type: Noun
• Root: cāturmāsya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• samāhitaḥ: concentrated
• samāhitaḥ: Karta-guṇa (कर्तृविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sam-ā-dhā (सम्+आ+धा धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त, पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; विशेषण (अन्यः)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced; vocative nṛpottama indicates a king as listener, but not named here)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Hṛṣīkeśa-darśana (Cāturmāsya) contrasted with Gayā-śrāddha (Pitṛpakṣa)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: nṛpottama (best of kings)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A royal listener addressed (‘nṛpottama’) while two scenes unfold: pilgrims performing Gayā-śrāddha with piṇḍa offerings on riverbank; and a composed devotee beholding Hṛṣīkeśa in temple during Cāturmāsya, suggesting a higher, more luminous fruit.

Characters & Entities

• Gayā
• Śrāddha
• Pitṛpakṣa
• Hṛṣīkeśa
• Cāturmāsya

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Honoring ancestors is highly meritorious, yet devotion culminating in the Lord’s darśana is held to be the highest fruit.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Gayā is explicitly referenced for śrāddha; the verse ultimately glorifies Hṛṣīkeśa-darśana during Cāturmāsya.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Gayā-śrāddha performed in Pitṛpakṣa, contrasted with the Cāturmāsya practice of steady devotion leading to Hṛṣīkeśa’s vision.