Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 16

Devanagari script

तच्च पारावतद्वंद्वं श्येनः परिजिघृक्षुकः । अवतीर्यांबरादाशु प्रविष्टोन्यशिवालये

Transliteration

tacca pārāvatadvaṃdvaṃ śyenaḥ parijighṛkṣukaḥ | avatīryāṃbarādāśu praviṣṭonyaśivālaye

Translation

Begierig, jenes Taubenpaar zu packen, stieß der Habicht rasch aus dem Himmel herab; doch sie waren bereits in einen anderen Śiva-Tempel eingetreten.

Word by Word

• tat: that (thing)
• tat: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

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

• pārāvata-dvandvam: the pair of pigeons
• pārāvata-dvandvam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pārāvata (प्रातिपदिक) + dvandva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (पारावतयोः द्वन्द्वम् = pair/couple of pigeons)

• śyenaḥ: the hawk
• śyenaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śyena (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन

• parijighṛkṣukaḥ: desiring to seize (them)
• parijighṛkṣukaḥ: Karta (Agent-qualifier/कर्तृविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pari-√grah (ग्रह् धातु) + kṣuka (कृदन्त-प्रत्यय)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; इच्छार्थक-ताच्छीलिक कृदन्त (desiderative adjectival: ‘wishing to seize’), उपसर्गः ‘pari-’

• avatīrya: having descended
• avatīrya: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ava-√tṝ (तॄ धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (gerund/absolutive): ‘having descended’; उपसर्गः ‘ava-’

• ambarāt: from the sky
• ambarāt: Apadana (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ambara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5), एकवचन

• āśu: quickly
• āśu: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: āśu (अव्यय)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषण-अव्यय (adverb)

• praviṣṭaḥ: entered
• praviṣṭaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra-√viś (विश् धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (past passive participle) पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; उपसर्गः ‘pra-’; (अत्र क्रियापदवत्: ‘entered’)

• anya-śiva-ālaye: into another Śiva-temple
• anya-śiva-ālaye: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: anya (प्रातिपदिक) + śiva (प्रातिपदिक) + ālaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (अन्यः शिवालयः = another Śiva-temple)

Speaker

Skanda (contextual; Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī (Avimukta-kṣetra)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Śaunaka and sages (typical frame; not explicit in excerpt)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A hawk dives from the sky toward a pair of doves; the doves slip through the doorway of a Śiva-temple, the threshold glowing as a protective boundary; the hawk halts mid-attack, arrested by the sanctity of the shrine.

Characters & Entities

• Pārāvata (dove)
• Śyena (hawk)
• Śivālaya (Śiva temple)
• Kāśī

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Taking refuge in Śiva’s abode is portrayed as a protective sanctuary where hostility loses its force.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse sits within the Kāśī-māhātmya setting, emphasizing the sanctity of Śiva-temples in Kāśī as places of refuge.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit rite is prescribed here; the focus is on the sanctifying power of entering a Śiva-temple.