Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 69

Devanagari script

या पुरा पार्वतीदेहाद्विनिःसृत्य महासुरौ । चंडमुंडौ निहत्यैव भक्षयामास क्रोधतः

Transliteration

yā purā pārvatīdehādviniḥsṛtya mahāsurau | caṃḍamuṃḍau nihatyaiva bhakṣayāmāsa krodhataḥ

Translation

Sie, die einst aus Pārvatīs Leib hervortrat und im Zorn die großen Asuras Caṇḍa und Muṇḍa erschlug und sie daraufhin verschlang.

Word by Word

• yā: she who
• yā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन

• purā: formerly
• purā: Kāla (Time/काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: purā (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (adverb)

• pārvatīdehāt: from Pārvatī’s body
• pārvatīdehāt: Apādāna (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pārvatī + deha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/अपादान), एकवचन; समासः—षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः ("Pārvatī's body")

• viniḥsṛtya: having come out
• viniḥsṛtya: Pūrvakāla-kriyā (Prior action/पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi+nis+sṛ (धातु)
• Form: कृत्—क्त्वा (absolutive/gerund), अव्यय; धातु: सृ (सरणे) उपसर्गाः वि-निस्-

• mahāsurau: two great demons
• mahāsurau: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā + asura (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), द्विवचन; कर्मधारयः ("great asuras")

• caṃḍamuṃḍau: Caṇḍa and Muṇḍa
• caṃḍamuṃḍau: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: caṃḍa + muṇḍa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), द्विवचन; इतरेतर-द्वन्द्वः

• nihatya: having slain
• nihatya: Pūrvakāla-kriyā (Prior action/पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ni+han (धातु)
• Form: कृत्—क्त्वा (absolutive), अव्यय; धातु: हन् (हिंसायाम्) उपसर्गः नि-

• eva: indeed
• eva: Sambandha (Emphasis/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारण-निपात

• bhakṣayāmāsa: devoured
• bhakṣayāmāsa: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: bhakṣ (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; धातु: भक्ष् (भक्षणे)

• krodhataḥ: out of anger
• krodhataḥ: Hetu (Cause/हेतु)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: krodha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पञ्चमी-प्रयोगः अव्ययवत् (ablative used adverbially); हेत्वर्थे ("out of anger")

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa), contextually narrating to sages

Visual Art Cues

Scene: From Pārvatī’s body bursts a dark, blazing Caṇḍikā/Kālī-like form; she slays Caṇḍa and Muṇḍa amid battlefield smoke and then devours them in wrath.

Characters & Entities

• Pārvatī
• Caṇḍa
• Muṇḍa
• Caṇḍikā (implied)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The Devī manifests to destroy adharma; righteous wrath is portrayed as protection of cosmic order.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No explicit tirtha is named in this verse; it supports the chapter’s Devī-māhātmya by recounting her demon-slaying identity.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None directly; the verse functions as a mythic basis for Caṇḍikā worship, especially in Navamī contexts.