Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 42

Devanagari script

युद्धे पुनस्तारकं च वधिष्यति न संशयः । येनोपायेन भगवाञ्छंभुः सर्वगुहाशयः

Transliteration

yuddhe punastārakaṃ ca vadhiṣyati na saṃśayaḥ | yenopāyena bhagavāñchaṃbhuḥ sarvaguhāśayaḥ

Translation

Im Kampf wird er Tāraka gewiss erschlagen — daran besteht kein Zweifel. Auf welche Weise auch immer man sich dem seligen Śambhu nahen und ihn verehren soll, der in den geheimen Tiefen aller Herzen wohnt…

Word by Word

• yuddhe: in battle
• yuddhe: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yuddha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन

• punaḥ: again
• punaḥ: Sambandha (Relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: punaḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; पुनरुक्ति/पुनः (again)

• tārakam: Tāraka
• tārakam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tāraka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय

• vadhiṣyati: will kill
• vadhiṣyati: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vadh (धातु)
• Form: लृट् (भविष्यत्/future), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• na: not / no
• na: Sambandha (Relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निषेध (negation)

• saṃśayaḥ: doubt
• saṃśayaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: saṃśaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• yena: by which
• yena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन; सम्बन्ध-प्रश्न (‘by which’)

• upāyena: by means / method
• upāyena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: upāya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन

• bhagavān: the Blessed Lord
• bhagavān: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhagavat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• śaṃbhuḥ: Śambhu (Śiva)
• śaṃbhuḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śaṃbhu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; भगवतः विशेष्य (apposition)

• sarva-guhā-śayaḥ: dwelling in all secret places
• sarva-guhā-śayaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक) + guhā (प्रातिपदिक) + śaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (सप्तमी: ‘dwelling in all caves/secret places/heart-caves’), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषण (śaṃbhuḥ)

Speaker

Aśarīrā-vāṇī (continuing)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kedāra (as Śambhu’s seat) implicitly; inner ‘guhā’ as spiritual tīrtha

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Devas

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A prophetic assurance: Skanda will slay Tāraka in battle; simultaneously, Śambhu is evoked as the hidden indweller of all hearts—suggesting a split imagery of cosmic war and meditative inner shrine.

Characters & Entities

• Tāraka
• Śambhu (Śiva)
• Śivātmaja (implied)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Śiva is both transcendent and indwelling; victory over adharma is assured when aligned with the divine will.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific tīrtha is named in the verse; it remains within Kedāra-kathā context.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

The verse hints at an ‘upāya’ (means) of approaching Śiva, but the specific practice is not stated in this line.