Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 17

Devanagari script

इन्दुमत्युवाच । सत्यमेतन्महाराज यदुक्तोऽसि पितामहैः । न त्वया सुकृतं कर्म संस्मरेऽहं कृतं पुरा

Transliteration

indumatyuvāca | satyametanmahārāja yadukto'si pitāmahaiḥ | na tvayā sukṛtaṃ karma saṃsmare'haṃ kṛtaṃ purā

Translation

因度摩提说道：“大王，此事确然无疑：祖先确曾如此对你开示。我却不记得你从前曾行过什么功德善业。”

Word by Word

• इन्दुमती: Indumatī
• इन्दुमती: Karta (Speaker/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: इन्दुमती (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• उवाच: said
• उवाच: Kriya (Predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच् (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), परस्मैपद; प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• सत्यम्: truth
• सत्यम्: Karta (Predicate nominal)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सत्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• एतत्: this
• एतत्: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• महाराज: O great king
• महाराज: Sambodhana (Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महाराज (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन (Vocative), एकवचन; (महा+राजन्)

• यत्: that (which)
• यत्: Karma (Object of implied 'is true')
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; सम्बन्धसूचक (that which)

• उक्तः: told
• उक्तः: Karta (Subject complement)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच् (धातु)
• Form: क्त (past passive participle); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• असि: are
• असि: Kriya (Copula)
• Type: Verb
• Root: अस् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), परस्मैपद; मध्यमपुरुष, एकवचन

• पितामहैः: by the grandfathers/ancestors
• पितामहैः: Karana (Agent in passive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितामह (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; तृतीया (3rd), बहुवचन

• न: not
• न: Sambandha (Negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निषेध (not)

• त्वया: by you
• त्वया: Karana/Agent (by you)
• Type: Noun
• Root: युष्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन

• सुकृतम्: well-done/meritorious
• सुकृतम्: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सुकृत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; (कर्म इति विशेषणम्)

• कर्म: deed
• कर्म: Karma (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कर्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• संस्मरे: I remember
• संस्मरे: Kriya (Predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम्+स्मृ (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), आत्मनेपद; उत्तमपुरुष, एकवचन

• अहम्: I
• अहम्: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• कृतम्: done
• कृतम्: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: क्त (past participle); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; (कर्म इति विशेषणवत्)

• पुरा: formerly/earlier
• पुरा: Kala (Time)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पुरा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक (formerly)

Speaker

Indumatī

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: the King (unnamed here)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A queen (Indumatī) speaks frankly to a troubled king in a palace interior; the atmosphere is grave, with implied unseen ancestors and the weight of unfulfilled duty.

Characters & Entities

• Indumatī
• Mahārāja (king)
• Pitāmahāḥ (ancestors)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Dharma requires honest self-audit: recognizing the absence of sukṛta is the first step toward deliberate merit-making.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No tīrtha is specified in this verse; it remains within the ethical-dialogue portion of the Arbuda Khaṇḍa narrative.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No specific ritual is prescribed here; the verse motivates the undertaking of sukṛta (merit-generating acts) implied in the surrounding passage.