Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 48

Devanagari script

तदस्माभिरिदं युक्तं शासनं दिश्यतां परम् । एवमुक्त्वा स्वीयमुद्रां मोक्तुकामं वृषं तदा

Transliteration

tadasmābhiridaṃ yuktaṃ śāsanaṃ diśyatāṃ param | evamuktvā svīyamudrāṃ moktukāmaṃ vṛṣaṃ tadā

Translation

Darum soll von uns diese höchst passende, erhabene Weisung erlassen werden. So sprechend, begehrte (Dharma) damals, sein eigenes Siegel/Abzeichen zu lösen, und wandte sich dem Stier (vṛṣa) zu, bereit, ihn freizugeben.

Word by Word

• tat: that / therefore
• tat: Sambandha (Relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम/प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; अन्वयेन ‘therefore/that’

• asmābhiḥ: by us
• asmābhiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम/प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तृतीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• idam: this
• idam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम/प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• yuktam: proper / fitting
• yuktam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: yukta (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक; √yuj)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषणम् (idam)

• śāsanam: command / decree
• śāsanam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śāsana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; apposition to idam

• diśyatām: let (it) be issued
• diśyatām: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √diś (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (आज्ञार्थ), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद (passive/impersonal sense) ‘let it be given/issued’

• param: supreme / excellent
• param: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: para (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषणम् (śāsanam)

• evam: thus
• evam: Prakara (Manner/प्रकार)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: evam (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (प्रकारवाचक; adverb)

• uktvā: having said
• uktvā: Purvakala-kriya (Prior action/पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vac (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त अव्ययभाव कृदन्त (gerund), ‘having said’

• svīya-mudrām: his own seal
• svīya-mudrām: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: svīya (प्रातिपदिक) + mudrā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (स्वीया च सा मुद्रा)

• moktukāmam: desiring to release
• moktukāmam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: moktu-kāma (प्रातिपदिक; √muc + तुमुन् + kāma)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; उपपद-तत्पुरुषः (मोक्तुं कामः) विशेषणम् (vṛṣam)

• vṛṣam: the bull
• vṛṣam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vṛṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• tadā: then
• tadā: Kala-adhikarana (Time/कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tadā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (कालवाचक; adverb of time)

Speaker

Dharma (personified)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A dramatic moment: Dharma personified prepares to issue a decree; he lifts or releases his seal (mudrā) while turning toward a bull (vṛṣa), suggesting dharma’s vehicle/emblem and readiness to dispatch an order.

Characters & Entities

• Dharma
• Vṛṣa (bull; symbol/vehicle associated with dharma/Śaiva imagery)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Dharma is upheld through clear divine directives and recognized symbols of authority that preserve sacred order.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Not named in this verse; it continues the administrative/authoritative framing within the ongoing tīrtha-māhātmya narrative.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit ritual; it references issuing a śāsana and the symbolic mudrā (seal) as a formal act of sanction.