Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 22

Devanagari script

उद्धृत्य दंडं सहसा नेतुकामस्तदा नृपम् । ददर्श च महाबाहुः शिवध्यानपरायणम्

Transliteration

uddhṛtya daṃḍaṃ sahasā netukāmastadā nṛpam | dadarśa ca mahābāhuḥ śivadhyānaparāyaṇam

Translation

তৎক্ষণাৎ দণ্ড উঠাই, নৃপক লৈ যাবলৈ উদ্যত মহাবাহুৱে দেখিলে—ৰাজা শিৱধ্যানত সম্পূৰ্ণ নিমগ্ন।

Word by Word

• uddhṛtya: having lifted/raised
• uddhṛtya: Kriya (पूर्वक्रिया/पूर्वकालिक क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ud-√hṛ (हृ धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund), अव्ययभाव

• daṇḍam: staff/rod
• daṇḍam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: daṇḍa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd case), एकवचन

• sahasā: suddenly
• sahasā: Sambandha (Manner/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sahasā (अव्यय)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषण-अव्यय (adverb: suddenly/forcibly)

• netu-kāmaḥ: desirous to take/lead away
• netu-kāmaḥ: Karta (Subject qualifier/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: netu (नी धातोः तुमुन्/infinitive-stem) + kāma (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; तुमुनर्थ-षष्ठी तत्पुरुषः (netuṃ kāmaḥ = desirous to lead)

• tadā: then
• tadā: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tadā (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय

• nṛpam: the king
• nṛpam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nṛpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd case), एकवचन

• dadarśa: saw
• dadarśa: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dṛś (दृश् धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय

• mahā-bāhuḥ: the mighty-armed one
• mahā-bāhuḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + bāhu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (महान् बāhuḥ यस्य)

• śiva-dhyāna-parāyaṇam: devoted to meditation on Śiva
• śiva-dhyāna-parāyaṇam: Karma (Object complement/कर्म-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śiva (प्रातिपदिक) + dhyāna (प्रातिपदिक) + parāyaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; षष्ठी/सप्तमी-तत्पुरुषसमासः (शिवस्य ध्यानम्; तस्मिन् परायणः)

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) narrating to the sages (deduced)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kedāra / Kedāranātha

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: ṛṣi-audience / tīrtha-śravaṇa seekers

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Yama, staff raised, steps forward to seize the king; the king sits unmoving, eyes inward, absorbed in Śiva-meditation—stillness confronting force.

Characters & Entities

• Yama
• Śiva
• King (nṛpa)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Single-pointed Śiva-meditation is portrayed as a spiritual state that confronts fear and punishment with inner sanctity.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kedāra’s Śiva-sthāna/temple setting, where devotion is shown to have exceptional potency.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Meditation on Śiva (Śiva-dhyāna) is indicated as the central practice, though not framed as a formal injunction.