Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 84

Devanagari script

तं प्रेष्य गरुडो दूरं भक्षयित्वाथ भूरिशः । नभो विक्षोभयांचक्रे प्रलयानिल सन्निभः

Transliteration

taṃ preṣya garuḍo dūraṃ bhakṣayitvātha bhūriśaḥ | nabho vikṣobhayāṃcakre pralayānila sannibhaḥ

Translation

Ihn weit fortschleudernd und dann verschlingend, versetzte der mächtige Garuḍa—gleich dem Wind der Pralaya—den Himmel selbst in heftige Aufruhr.

Word by Word

• तम्: him
• तम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative), एकवचन

• प्रेष्य: having sent
• प्रेष्य: Purvakala (पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: प्र-इष् (धातु) + ल्यप् (क्त्वा-प्रत्ययः)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (absolutive/gerund), ‘having sent/dispatching’

• गरुडः: Garuḍa
• गरुडः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गरुड (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• दूरम्: far away
• दूरम्: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: दूर (प्रातिपदिक/अव्ययप्राय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय (adverb of place/distance)

• भक्षयित्वा: having devoured
• भक्षयित्वा: Purvakala (पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: भक्ष् (धातु) + क्त्वा
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (absolutive), ‘having eaten/devoured’

• अथ: then
• अथ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ (अव्यय)
• Form: अनन्तरार्थक-अव्यय (then/thereupon)

• भूरिशः: greatly
• भूरिशः: Kriya-vishesana (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: भूरि (प्रातिपदिक) + शस् (अव्ययीभाव/प्रत्यय)
• Form: प्रकार/परिमाणवाचक-अव्यय (abundantly, greatly)

• नभः: the sky
• नभः: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नभस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative), एकवचन

• विक्षोभयाम्: (he) shook/agitated
• विक्षोभयाम्: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वि-क्षुभ् (धातु) + णिच् (causative)
• Form: णिजन्त-धातु; लुङ्-लकार (Aorist) रूपे ‘...याम्’ (आज्ञार्थ/विधिलिङ्-सदृश प्रयोगः) — पाठभेद/सन्ध्यन्तरसम्भव; एकवचन-प्रयोग

• चक्रे: did/made
• चक्रे: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन, आत्मनेपद

• प्रलय-अनिल-सन्निभः: resembling the wind of dissolution
• प्रलय-अनिल-सन्निभः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्रलय (प्रातिपदिक) + अनिल (प्रातिपदिक) + सन्निभ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुषसमास (प्रलयस्य अनिल इव सन्निभः); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

Speaker

Narrator (Skanda in Kāśī-khaṇḍa context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Garuḍa hurls the man far away and devours him; the sky churns violently like the wind of dissolution.

Characters & Entities

• Garuḍa
• Pralaya (cosmic dissolution)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Divine power, when aligned with a cosmic purpose, can overwhelm even the heavens—reminding that dharma operates on a scale beyond human strength.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The broader textual home is Kāśī-khaṇḍa (Kāśī’s greatness), but the verse itself describes Garuḍa’s cosmic force rather than a local tīrtha.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None in this verse.