Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 36

Devanagari script

वृक्षगुल्मलतावल्ल्यो गृहाणि च समन्ततः । दिग्विभागैश्च सर्वैश्च प्रवृत्तो हव्यवाहनः

Transliteration

vṛkṣagulmalatāvallyo gṛhāṇi ca samantataḥ | digvibhāgaiśca sarvaiśca pravṛtto havyavāhanaḥ

Translation

চারদিকে গাছ, ঝোপ, লতা-গুল্ম এবং ঘরবাড়িও গ্রাসিত হল; সকল দিক থেকে হব্যবাহন অগ্নি ছড়িয়ে পড়ল।

Word by Word

• vṛkṣa-gulma-latā-vallyaḥ: trees, shrubs, creepers, and vines
• vṛkṣa-gulma-latā-vallyaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vṛkṣa + gulma + latā + vallī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: द्वन्द्वसमास (copulative); स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), बहुवचन (Plural)

• gṛhāṇi: houses
• gṛhāṇi: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gṛha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), बहुवचन (Plural)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयबोधक (conjunction)

• samantataḥ: on all sides
• samantataḥ: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: samantataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; परितः/सर्वतः (adverb: on all sides)

• dig-vibhāgaiḥ: by the divisions of directions (from all quarters)
• dig-vibhāgaiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: diś + vibhāga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुषसमास (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: ‘of directions’); पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), तृतीया (Instrumental/3rd), बहुवचन (Plural)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयबोधक (conjunction)

• sarvaiḥ: all
• sarvaiḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), तृतीया (Instrumental/3rd), बहुवचन (Plural); विशेषण (qualifying digvibhāgaiḥ)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयबोधक (conjunction)

• pravṛttaḥ: set in motion, active, spreading
• pravṛttaḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pra-√vṛt (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (past participle), पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); विशेषण

• havyavāhanaḥ: Agni (fire), the oblation-carrier
• havyavāhanaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: havya + vāhana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुषसमास (object relation: ‘carrier of oblations’); पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) (deduced: Āvantya-khaṇḍa narrative style)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Fire spreads from all directions, encircling homes and vegetation; Agni’s presence is suggested as a radiant, many-tongued blaze moving like a living being.

Characters & Entities

• Agni (Havyavāhana)
• Houses (Gṛha)
• Vegetation (Vṛkṣa/Gulma/Latā/Vallī)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

When divine judgment unfolds, it is total—touching nature and human dwellings alike—signifying the inescapability of moral consequence.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Revā-khaṇḍa’s sacred landscape frames the narration, but this verse itself is not a tīrtha-māhātmya statement.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct instruction; the term Havyavāhana recalls Agni’s ritual role, but the verse describes conflagration.