Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 60

Devanagari script

प्रतीपपालकंनाम संस्थितं शिवशासनम् । ततः कामादिभिः षड्भिः पदैश्चंक्रमणात्मिकाम्

Transliteration

pratīpapālakaṃnāma saṃsthitaṃ śivaśāsanam | tataḥ kāmādibhiḥ ṣaḍbhiḥ padaiścaṃkramaṇātmikām

Translation

ثم استقرَّت شريعةٌ شيفيّة تُدعى «برَتيبَبالَكَ». وبعد ذلك، مدفوعًا بالاندفاعات الستّ التي أولها الشهوة، صارت حياتي نفسها تجوالًا قلقًا—خطوةً إثر خطوة.

Word by Word

• pratīpapālakam: Pratīpapālaka (name/title)
• pratīpapālakam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pratīpa + pālaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष (प्रतीपस्य पालकः); पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन

• nāma: by name
• nāma: Nipata (Naming marker/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: nāman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (नाम-शब्दः, indeclinable marker): ‘नाम’ = by name/called

• saṃsthitam: established
• saṃsthitam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: saṃ + sthā (स्था—तिष्ठति धातु) → saṃsthita (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त/PPP), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘संस्थितम्’ = established/placed

• śivaśāsanam: Śiva’s command/ordinance
• śivaśāsanam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śiva + śāsana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: शिवस्य शासनम्; नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन

• tataḥ: then
• tataḥ: Adhikarana (Context/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb): ततः (then/thereupon)

• kāmādibhiḥ: by/with Kāma and others
• kāmādibhiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāma + ādi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष: कामः आदिः येषाम् (कामा-आदि-समूह); पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), बहुवचन

• ṣaḍbhiḥ: with six
• ṣaḍbhiḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ṣaṭ (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: संख्यावाचक; तृतीया, बहुवचन; ‘षड्भिः’ = with six

• padaiḥ: with steps
• padaiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pada (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया, बहुवचन; ‘पदैः’ = by steps/feet/words (context: steps)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (conjunction): च (and)

• aṃkramaṇātmikām: having the nature of pacing/walking
• aṃkramaṇātmikām: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: caṃkramaṇa + ātmikā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष: चंक्रमणम् आत्मा यस्याः/यस्य; स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; (पाठे ‘चंक्रमणात्मिकाम्’ इति)

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) to the sages (deduced from Māheśvarakhaṇḍa context)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A written or proclaimed Śaiva ordinance ‘Pratīpapālaka’ is established; then the figure is shown walking endlessly, pulled by personified impulses (kāma etc.), footprints marking ceaseless steps.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Unchecked inner impulses—starting with desire—produce restlessness; Śaiva dharma implies restraint and steadiness.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific tīrtha is named in this verse; it focuses on an inner moral-spiritual condition within a Śaiva narrative.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit vrata, dāna, snāna, or japa is prescribed in this verse.