Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 31

Devanagari script

फेत्कारकारी पंचास्यो बर्बरी भीमरूपवान् । भग्नपक्षः कालमेघो युवानो भास्करस्तथा

Transliteration

phetkārakārī paṃcāsyo barbarī bhīmarūpavān | bhagnapakṣaḥ kālamegho yuvāno bhāskarastathā

Translation

Ich verneige mich vor Phetkārakārī, Paṃcāsya (dem Fünfgesichtigen), Barbarī, dem schreckgestaltigen Bhīmarūpavān, Bhagnapakṣa, Kālamegha (dunkel wie eine Gewitterwolke), Yuvāna und ebenso Bhāskara.

Word by Word

• फेत्कारकारी: maker of the 'phetkāra' cry
• फेत्कारकारी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: फेत्कार (प्रातिपदिक) + कारी (√कृ धातु, कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (one who makes a phetkāra-sound)

• पंचास्यः: five-faced
• पंचास्यः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पञ्च (प्रातिपदिक) + आस्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; बहुव्रीहि-समास (one who has five mouths)

• बर्बरी: Barbarī (a name)
• बर्बरी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: बर्बरी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन (इकारान्त-प्रातिपदिक)

• भीमरूपवान्: having a terrible form
• भीमरूपवान्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: भीम (प्रातिपदिक) + रूपवत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास; विशेषण (adjective)

• भग्नपक्षः: broken-winged
• भग्नपक्षः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भग्न (√भञ्ज् धातु, कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक) + पक्ष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; बहुव्रीहि-समास (one whose wings are broken)

• कालमेघः: dark cloud (Kālamegha)
• कालमेघः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: काल (प्रातिपदिक) + मेघ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्मधारय-समास

• युवानः: the young one (Yuvāna)
• युवानः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: युवन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; युवन्-शब्द (irregular stem)

• भास्करः: Bhāskara (sun; a name)
• भास्करः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भास्कर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• तथा: also/likewise
• तथा: Sambandha (Adverbial/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, समुच्चयार्थ (also/likewise)

Speaker

Lomaharṣaṇa (Sūta), narrating to the sages (deduced from Māheśvarakhaṇḍa context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A procession of formidable guardians: Paṃcāsya with five faces, Bhīmarūpavān towering, Kālamegha cloaked in storm-darkness, and Bhāskara radiant like the sun; the devotee bows, framed by lamps and a looming gateway, conveying ‘terrible as protection’.

Characters & Entities

• Kṣetrapāla (field/temple guardians)
• Phetkārakārī
• Paṃcāsya
• Barbarī
• Bhīmarūpavān
• Bhagnapakṣa
• Kālamegha
• Yuvāna
• Bhāskara

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Divine guardians embody awe and restraint, protecting holy boundaries and supporting disciplined worship.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

This is a list within a broader kṣetra-guardian litany; the site is not singled out in this verse.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Recitation of guardian-names as a protective praise (stuti) during kṣetra-pūjā.