Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 17

Devanagari script

ततस्तं पर्वताकारं गुह्यं पक्षिणमव्ययम् । प्रविवेश महाघोरं पर्वतो ह्यर्णवं स्वराट्

Transliteration

tatastaṃ parvatākāraṃ guhyaṃ pakṣiṇamavyayam | praviveśa mahāghoraṃ parvato hyarṇavaṃ svarāṭ

Translation

Dann trat jener geheimnisvolle, unvergängliche Vogel, berggleich an Gestalt, in den überaus schrecklichen Ozean ein; denn der Herrscher „Berg“ stürzte wahrhaft ins Meer.

Word by Word

• ततः: then
• ततः: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रियाविशेषण (adverb: then)

• तम्: that (him/it)
• तम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (Masculine, Accusative, Singular); विशेषण/सर्वनाम

• पर्वत-आकारम्: mountain-shaped
• पर्वत-आकारम्: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पर्वत (प्रातिपदिक) + आकार (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (पर्वतस्य आकारः इव)

• गुह्यम्: mysterious, secret
• गुह्यम्: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: गुह्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (Masculine, Accusative, Singular)

• पक्षिणम्: bird
• पक्षिणम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पक्षिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (Masculine, Accusative, Singular)

• अव्ययम्: imperishable, undecaying
• अव्ययम्: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अव्यय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (Masculine, Accusative, Singular)

• प्रविवेश: entered
• प्रविवेश: Kriyā (Predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र + विश् (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• महा-घोरम्: very terrible
• महा-घोरम्: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महा (प्रातिपदिक) + घोर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (महान् घोरः)

• पर्वतः: the mountain
• पर्वतः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पर्वत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन (Masculine, Nominative, Singular)

• हि: indeed
• हि: Sambandha (Discourse marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: हि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निश्चय/कारणसूचक (emphatic/causal particle)

• अर्णवम्: ocean
• अर्णवम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अर्णव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (Masculine, Accusative, Singular)

• स्वराट्: sovereign, self-ruling (one)
• स्वराट्: Karta (Apposition to subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्वराट् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन (Masculine, Nominative, Singular); विशेषणवत् (epithet)

Speaker

Narrator (a Brāhmaṇa sage) addressing a king (Nareśvara)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Mahārṇava (episode locus)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Unspecified

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A colossal, mountain-like bird-being, enigmatic and imperishable, plunges into a dark, churning ocean; the horizon bends under its mass as onlookers stand stunned.

Characters & Entities

• Baka (bird-being)
• Arṇava (ocean)
• Parvata (mountain)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The Purāṇas teach that the divine can appear in hidden, awe-inspiring forms, leading seekers through fearsome thresholds into revelation.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Not directly named; the Revā Khaṇḍa setting remains the contextual frame.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it narrates a dramatic movement into the ocean.