Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 10

Devanagari script

रुधिरोद्गारशोणाङ्गी महामाया सुभीषणा । पिबन्ती रुधिरं तत्र महामांसवसाप्रिया

Transliteration

rudhirodgāraśoṇāṅgī mahāmāyā subhīṣaṇā | pibantī rudhiraṃ tatra mahāmāṃsavasāpriyā

Translation

Dort trank die überaus furchterregende Mahāmāyā—deren Leib vom hervorspritzenden Blut scharlachrot war—Blut und fand Gefallen an großen Haufen von Fleisch und Fett.

Word by Word

• रुधिरोद्गारशोणाङ्गी: she whose limbs are red with blood-vomiting/oozing
• रुधिरोद्गारशोणाङ्गी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: रुधिर + उद्गार + शोण + अङ्गिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; बहुव्रीहिसमासः—“रुधिरोद्गारः” (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष/कर्मधारय-भाव) + “शोणाङ्गी” (कर्मधारय) इत्यर्थे, समस्तपदम् विशेषणम्

• महामाया: the Great Illusion (Mahāmāyā)
• महामाया: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महा + माया (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; कर्मधारयसमासः

• सुभीषणा: very terrifying
• सुभीषणा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सु + भीषण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; विशेषणम्

• पिबन्ती: drinking
• पिबन्ती: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: पा (धातु)
• Form: वर्तमानकाले शतृ-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (present active participle); स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; परस्मैपदी-भावः

• रुधिरम्: blood
• रुधिरम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रुधिर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; कर्मपदम्

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; स्थानवाचक क्रियाविशेषणम् (locative adverb)

• महामांसवसाप्रिया: fond of much flesh and fat
• महामांसवसाप्रिया: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महा + मांस + वसा + प्रिय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; तत्पुरुषसमासः (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः)—“महामांसवसयोः प्रिया” इति

Speaker

Deductive (Revā Khaṇḍa narrative voice; likely Sūta/Lomaharṣaṇa relating the account)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā (Narmadā) tīrtha context (specific spot implied by later verses)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A night battlefield on a riverbank: Mahāmāyā, crimson-limbed, terrifying yet regal, drinks blood amid heaps of flesh and fat; the horizon flashes with storm-light; attendants (gaṇas) hover in smoky silhouettes.

Characters & Entities

• Mahāmāyā

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The Goddess embodies both terror and protection; her fierce form annihilates forces opposed to dharma.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Not specified in this verse; the broader Revā/Narmadā setting frames the narrative.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None.