Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 9

Devanagari script

कुरूणां पांडवानां च युद्धोद्योगं विलोक्य तु । बंधूनां स वधं सोढुमसमर्थो हलायुधः

Transliteration

kurūṇāṃ pāṃḍavānāṃ ca yuddhodyogaṃ vilokya tu | baṃdhūnāṃ sa vadhaṃ soḍhumasamartho halāyudhaḥ

Translation

Als er die Kriegsvorbereitungen zwischen den Kurus und den Pāṇḍavas sah, konnte Halāyudha (Balabhadra) das Schlachten der eigenen Verwandten nicht ertragen und hielt es nicht aus.

Word by Word

• kurūṇām: of the Kurus
• kurūṇām: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kuru (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; षष्ठी-विभक्ति (6th/सम्बन्ध), बहुवचन

• pāṇḍavānām: of the Pāṇḍavas
• pāṇḍavānām: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pāṇḍava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; षष्ठी-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयार्थक-निपात

• yuddha-udyogam: the preparation for war
• yuddha-udyogam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yuddha (प्रातिपदिक) + udyoga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (युद्धस्य उद्योगः)

• vilokya: having seen
• vilokya: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi√lok (लोक् धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (gerund/absolutive); पूर्वकालिक-क्रिया

• tu: then/indeed
• tu: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारण/विरोधार्थक-निपात

• baṃdhūnām: of (his) kinsmen
• baṃdhūnām: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: baṃdhu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; षष्ठी-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• saḥ: he
• saḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• vadham: killing/slaughter
• vadham: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vadha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• soḍhum: to endure/bear
• soḍhum: Prayojana (Purpose/प्रयोजन)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √sah (सह् धातु)
• Form: तुमुन्-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (infinitive); परस्मैपद-धात्वर्थः

• asamarthaḥ: unable
• asamarthaḥ: Karta (Subject-complement/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a- (नञ्) + samartha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; नञ्-पूर्वक विशेषण

• halāyudhaḥ: he whose weapon is a plough (Balabhadra)
• halāyudhaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hala (प्रातिपदिक) + āyudha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; बहुव्रीहि (हलम् आयुधं यस्य सः)

Speaker

Sūta (continuing narration)

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Brāhmaṇas/Ṛṣis

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A battlefield-camp panorama before war: banners, chariots, conches; Balabhadra with plough and mace stands apart, sorrowful, turning away from the armies, embodying refusal to witness kin-slaying.

Characters & Entities

• Kuru
• Pāṇḍava
• Balabhadra (Halāyudha)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

When dharma becomes conflicted and violence looms, turning inward through restraint and sacred retreat is presented as a righteous response.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Not named in this verse; it sets up Balabhadra’s choice that leads into tīrtha-yātrā culminating in the praised site of this chapter.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly; the verse motivates renunciation of participation and the later undertaking of pilgrimage.