Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 44

Devanagari script

वेतालजन्म संप्राप्य चिरं लोके चरिष्यसि । इत्युक्त्वा गालवः कन्यां गृहीत्वा मुनिभिः सह

Transliteration

vetālajanma saṃprāpya ciraṃ loke cariṣyasi | ityuktvā gālavaḥ kanyāṃ gṛhītvā munibhiḥ saha

Translation

„Nachdem du eine Vetāla-Geburt erlangt hast, wirst du lange in der Welt umherwandern.“ So sprach Gālava; dann nahm er das Mädchen und zog mit den Munis davon.

Word by Word

• vetālajanma: vetāla-birth (birth as a vetāla)
• vetālajanma: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vetāla + janman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; समासः—षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (वेतालस्य जन्म)

• saṃprāpya: having attained
• saṃprāpya: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial participle/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam + √prāp (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund)

• ciram: for a long time
• ciram: Kriya-viseshana (Temporal adverb/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: cira (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb of time)

• loke: in the world
• loke: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: loka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन

• cariṣyasi: you will wander
• cariṣyasi: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √car (धातु)
• Form: लृट् (Simple Future), मध्यमपुरुष (2nd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• iti: thus
• iti: Sambandha (Quotation marker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (अव्यय)
• Form: उद्धरणसूचक (quotative particle)

• uktvā: having said
• uktvā: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial participle/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vac (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund)

• gālavaḥ: Gālava
• gālavaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gālava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• kanyām: the maiden
• kanyām: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kanyā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• gṛhītvā: having taken
• gṛhītvā: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial participle/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √grah (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund)

• munibhiḥ: with sages
• munibhiḥ: Sahakari (Association/सहकारि)
• Type: Noun
• Root: muni (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), बहुवचन (Plural)

• saha: together with
• saha: Sahakari (Association/सहकारि)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: saha (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (preposition-like), सहार्थक (with)

Speaker

Narrator (Purāṇic voice), reporting Gālava’s words and action

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Gālava pronounces the curse of vetāla-birth; the maiden is taken along as sages depart, leaving the cursed parties in dread. The atmosphere is twilight-like, hinting at liminal vetāla imagery.

Characters & Entities

• Gālava
• kanyā (maiden)
• muni (sages)
• vetāla

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Misdeeds can lead to degraded states of existence; dharma safeguards one from such painful destinies.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No tīrtha is directly praised in this verse; it advances the Setu-khaṇḍa storyline.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; the verse describes a curse and subsequent departure.