Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 66

Devanagari script

अदत्तपरवस्तूनां गृह्णतः करपल्लवम् । आप्लुत्याप्लुत्य तैलेन तप्तांगारे पचोत्कट

Transliteration

adattaparavastūnāṃ gṛhṇataḥ karapallavam | āplutyāplutya tailena taptāṃgāre pacotkaṭa

Translation

Ergreife die Hand dessen, der fremdes Gut nimmt, ohne dass es gegeben wurde; tauche sie immer wieder in Öl und rüste sie heftig auf glühenden Kohlen.

Word by Word

• अदत्तपरवस्तूनाम्: of (those) taking others’ undonated goods
• अदत्तपरवस्तूनाम्: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अदत्त (कृदन्त; दा√ (धातु) + निपातित-नकार/नञ्-भाव) + पर (प्रातिपदिक) + वस्तु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), बहुवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (नञ्-तत्पुरुषः): अदत्तानि परवस्तूनि येषाम्/तस्य (of those whose others’ goods are not given/unauthorized)

• गृह्णतः: of (one) taking
• गृह्णतः: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ग्रह् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present/वर्त्तमान), परस्मैपद, प्रथमा (Nominalized participial use), एकवचन; शतृ-प्रत्ययार्थे वर्तमानकाले ‘गृह्णत्’ (taking) — here in षष्ठी/सम्बन्ध-प्रयोग: ‘गृह्णतः’ = of one who takes

• करपल्लवम्: the hand (tender like a shoot)
• करपल्लवम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कर (प्रातिपदिक) + पल्लव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारयः: कर एव पल्लवः (hand like a tender shoot)

• आप्लुत्य: having dipped
• आप्लुत्य: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: आ + प्लु (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्यय (Gerund/Absolutive): ‘having dipped/immersed’

• आप्लुत्य: again dipping
• आप्लुत्य: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: आ + प्लु (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्यय (Gerund): पुनरुक्ति (repetition)

• तैलेन: with oil
• तैलेन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तैल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन

• तप्ताङ्गारे: in/onto heated charcoal
• तप्ताङ्गारे: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तप्त (कृदन्त; तप्√ (धातु) + क्त) + अङ्गार (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारयः: तप्तः अङ्गारः (heated charcoal)

• पच: cook/burn
• पच: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: पच् (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (Imperative/आज्ञार्थ), परस्मैपद, मध्यमपुरुष (2nd person), एकवचन

• उत्कट: O fierce one
• उत्कट: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उत्कट (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative/सम्बोधन), एकवचन; विशेषण-प्रयोग (addressing the agent)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced for Kāśīkhaṇḍa: Skanda instructing Agastya / narrating consequences of adharma)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A grim Yama-dūta seizes the thief’s palm; the hand is repeatedly dipped in oil and held over blazing coals, emphasizing the instrument of sin (the grasping hand).

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Taking what is not given (stealing) is adharma; the Purāṇa warns that actions bear precise consequences.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The broader frame is Kāśī (Vārāṇasī) in the Kāśīkhaṇḍa, though this verse itself focuses on moral consequence rather than a named tīrtha.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it is a naraka-punishment description meant to deter theft and uphold dharma.