Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 90

Devanagari script

निपेतुः पक्षवातेन सायुधाश्च सवाहनाः । न ज्ञायंते क्व संप्राप्ता वात्यया पार्णतार्णवत्

Transliteration

nipetuḥ pakṣavātena sāyudhāśca savāhanāḥ | na jñāyaṃte kva saṃprāptā vātyayā pārṇatārṇavat

Translation

Durch den Wind seiner Flügel stürzten sie—noch bewaffnet und auf ihren Reittieren. Man wusste nicht einmal, wohin sie geschleudert wurden, wie Blätter, die ein Wirbelsturm forttreibt.

Word by Word

• nipetuḥ: fell down
• nipetuḥ: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ni + √pat (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथम-पुरुष, बहुवचन; परस्मैपद

• pakṣavātena: by the wind from (his) wings
• pakṣavātena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pakṣa + vāta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental/3rd), एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (पक्षस्य वातः)

• sāyudhāḥ: with weapons
• sāyudhāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sa + āyudha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; कर्मधारयः (आयुधैः सह)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Conjunction/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• savāhanāḥ: with their mounts/vehicles
• savāhanāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sa + vāhana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; कर्मधारयः (वाहनैः सह)

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (Negation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्यय

• jñāyante: are known/are perceived
• jñāyante: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √jñā (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथम-पुरुष, बहुवचन; आत्मनेपद; कर्मणि-प्रयोग (passive sense: are known)

• kva: where
• kva: Sambandha (Adverbial/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kva (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रश्नवाचक-अव्यय (interrogative adverb of place)

• saṃprāptāḥ: having reached/arrived
• saṃprāptāḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sam + √prāp (धातु) + kta (क्त) → saṃprāpta (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; भूतकर्मणि-क्त (past passive participle)

• vātyayā: by a whirlwind/storm
• vātyayā: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vātyā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental/3rd), एकवचन

• pārṇatārṇavat: like leaves and straw
• pārṇatārṇavat: Sambandha (Comparison/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: pārṇa + tārṇa + vat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: उपमावाचक-अव्यय (simile adverb) ‘-वत्’

Speaker

Narrator (Skanda in Kāśī-khaṇḍa context)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A colossal wing-generated gale hurls armed gods and their mounts through space; figures tumble like leaves in a storm, directionless and untraceable.

Characters & Entities

• Garuḍa
• Surāḥ (implied)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Ego and armament cannot stand before overwhelming divine momentum; humility before cosmic power is implied.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No named tīrtha occurs in this verse; it remains within the Kāśī-khaṇḍa narrative arc.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None in this verse.