Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 65

Devanagari script

करुणाक्षरवादिन्यो निराधारा गताः शिवम् । यदि वैरं सुरारेश्च पुरुषोपरिपावक

Transliteration

karuṇākṣaravādinyo nirādhārā gatāḥ śivam | yadi vairaṃ surāreśca puruṣoparipāvaka

Translation

Mit mitleidvollen Worten, ohne Halt und Zuflucht, suchten sie Schutz bei Śiva. „Wenn Feindschaft besteht gegen den Feind der Götter, o Feuer, das sich nach dem Geheiß eines Mannes bewegt…“

Word by Word

• karuṇākṣara-vādinyaḥ: women speaking pitiful words
• karuṇākṣara-vādinyaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: karuṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + akṣara (प्रातिपदिक) + vādinī (प्रातिपदिक; √vad (धातु) ‘to speak’)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; समासः (बहुपद-तत्पुरुष): ‘speaking compassionate words/syllables’

• nirādhārāḥ: unsupported, helpless
• nirādhārāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjectival modifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nirādhāra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषण (to karuṇākṣaravādinyaḥ): ‘without support’

• gatāḥ: have gone
• gatāḥ: Kriyā (Predicative action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √gam (धातु)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; भूतकृदन्त (क्त): ‘gone/approached’ (used predicatively)

• śivam: to Śiva
• śivam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śiva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd case/Accusative), एकवचन; गत्यर्थक-क्रियायाः कर्म (object of ‘gatāḥ’)

• yadi: if
• yadi: Sambandha (Condition marker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yadi (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (सम्बन्धबोधक/conditional particle): ‘if’

• vairaṃ: enmity
• vairaṃ: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vaira (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• surāreḥ: of the enemy of the gods
• surāreḥ: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sura + ari (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, एकवचन; समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: ‘enemy of the gods’

• ca: and
• ca: Samuccaya (Conjunction/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (समुच्चय/ conjunction): ‘and’

• puruṣa-upari-pāvaka: O fire set upon men
• puruṣa-upari-pāvaka: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: puruṣa (प्रातिपदिक) + upari (अव्यय) + pāvaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, एकवचन; समासः (उपपद-तत्पुरुष): ‘fire (pāvaka) above/over a man’—vocative address

Speaker

Dānava women (collective lament; addressing Fire and invoking Śiva)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Śiva-āśraya in Revā-kṣetra (contextual)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Women, smoke-stained and trembling, hands folded in añjali, turning toward a Śiva symbol—liṅga or trident—while flames rage behind; their speech is tender yet urgent, invoking protection.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva
• Pāvaka (Fire)
• Sura-ari (enemy of the gods)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Śiva is remembered as a final refuge for the helpless, and compassion is upheld even amid conflict.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No single tīrtha is named in this verse; the Revā Khaṇḍa setting provides the sacred backdrop.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Implicitly, śaraṇāgati (seeking refuge) and prayerful invocation of Śiva; no formal vrata/dāna is specified.