Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 73

Devanagari script

मक्षिकामशकान्दंशाञ्छलभाञ्जलजान् कृमीन् । गुल्मवृक्षलतावल्लीत्वक्सारतृणजातिषु

Transliteration

makṣikāmaśakāndaṃśāñchalabhāñjalajān kṛmīn | gulmavṛkṣalatāvallītvaksāratṛṇajātiṣu

Translation

(Er ist gegenwärtig als) Fliegen, Mücken, Stechmücken, Heuschrecken, wassergeborene Wesen und Würmer; in Sträuchern, Bäumen, Kletterpflanzen und Ranken; in Rinde und Mark; und in jeder Art von Gras.

Word by Word

• मक्षिकामशकान्: flies and mosquitoes
• मक्षिकामशकान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मक्षिका-मशक (प्रातिपदिक; मक्षिका + मशक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), बहुवचन; द्वन्द्वः—मक्षिकाः च मशकाः च

• दंशान्: biting insects/gnats
• दंशान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दंश (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), बहुवचन

• शलभान्: locusts/grasshoppers
• शलभान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शलभ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), बहुवचन

• जलजान्: water-born creatures
• जलजान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जलज (प्रातिपदिक; जल + ज)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), बहुवचन; उपपद-तत्पुरुषः—‘जले जायन्ते’

• कृमीन्: worms
• कृमीन्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कृमि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), बहुवचन

• गुल्मवृक्षलतावल्लीत्वक्सारतृणजातिषु: among the species of shrubs, trees, creepers, vines, bark, pith, and grasses
• गुल्मवृक्षलतावल्लीत्वक्सारतृणजातिषु: Adhikaraṇa (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गुल्म-वृक्ष-लता-वली-त्वक्-सार-तृण-जाति (प्रातिपदिक; गुल्म + वृक्ष + लता + वली + त्वक् + सार + तृण + जाति)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), बहुवचन; समुच्चय-द्वन्द्वः, अन्ते ‘जाति’—‘गुल्मादि-जातिषु’ इत्यर्थः

Speaker

Celestial women (Apsarās / Amarāṅganāḥ), speaking collectively (contextual deduction)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā (Narmadā) tīrthas

Type: river

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Tridaśāṅganāḥ (celestial ladies)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A close-up devotional ecology: insects hovering over flowers, mosquitoes near water, worms in soil, locusts in fields, aquatic larvae, with shrubs, trees, vines, grasses; a subtle divine glow suffuses bark and pith, suggesting sacred immanence in the ordinary.

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The sacred vision extends to the smallest beings and the plant world—nothing lies outside the divine presence.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific tirtha is named; the verse provides the spiritual lens through which Revā-region pilgrimage is to be understood.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; the teaching is about universal reverence rooted in divine immanence.