Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 60

Devanagari script

निर्दयत्वं तथा द्रोहं कुटिलत्वं विशेषतः । अशौचं निर्घृणत्वं च स्त्रीणां दोषाः स्वभावजाः

Transliteration

nirdayatvaṃ tathā drohaṃ kuṭilatvaṃ viśeṣataḥ | aśaucaṃ nirghṛṇatvaṃ ca strīṇāṃ doṣāḥ svabhāvajāḥ

Translation

‘নির্দয়তা, দ্ৰোহ এবং বিশেষত কুটিলতা; অশৌচ ও করুণাহীনতা—এগুলি নারীদের স্বভাবজাত দোষ বলে কথিত।’

Word by Word

• nirdayatvam: cruelty
• nirdayatvam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nirdayatva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• tathā: and also
• tathā: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb/conjunction): and/also/likewise

• droham: treachery
• droham: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: droha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• kuṭilatvam: crookedness
• kuṭilatvam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kuṭilatva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• viśeṣataḥ: especially
• viśeṣataḥ: Sambandha (Modifier/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: viśeṣatas (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb): especially/particularly

• aśaucam: impurity
• aśaucam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: aśauca (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• nirghṛṇatvam: mercilessness
• nirghṛṇatvam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nirghṛṇatva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

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

• strīṇām: of women
• strīṇām: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: strī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, बहुवचन

• doṣāḥ: faults
• doṣāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: doṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• svabhāvajāḥ: innate / born of nature
• svabhāvajāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: svabhāva (प्रातिपदिक) + ja (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; √jan जन्)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; उपपद-तत्पुरुषः/षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (svabhāvāt jāḥ = born of nature); विशेषणम् (qualifying doṣāḥ)

Speaker

Condemned man (Maṇibhadra or the accused male figure) reciting verses; exact name implied by context

Visual Art Cues

Scene: कैदी चलते-चलते उग्र मुख से निन्दात्मक वाक्य बोलता है; वधक कठोर; वातावरण में कटुता।

Characters & Entities

• strī (women)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

It reflects the speaker’s polemical blame in a crisis; dharma-reading requires context, not isolated generalization.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No tīrtha is named in this verse; it is a narrative utterance within the tīrtha-māhātmya chapter.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None.