Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 2

Devanagari script

लंपटोहि महापाप उत्तमस्त्रीषु सर्वदा । द्यूतकारी सदा मंदः कितवैः सह संगतः

Transliteration

laṃpaṭohi mahāpāpa uttamastrīṣu sarvadā | dyūtakārī sadā maṃdaḥ kitavaiḥ saha saṃgataḥ

Translation

Er war wahrlich lüstern und schwer sündig, stets hinter den edlen Frauen anderer her. Immerzu ein Spieler, von stumpfem Verstand, hielt er Umgang mit Betrügern.

Word by Word

• laṃpaṭaḥ: lecherous
• laṃpaṭaḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: laṃpaṭa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — Masculine, Nominative, Singular (lecherous)

• hi: indeed
• hi: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (निश्चय/हेतौ) — Particle (indeed/for)

• mahā-pāpaḥ: greatly sinful
• mahā-pāpaḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + pāpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कर्मधारयः (महच्च तत् पापम्); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — Masculine, Nominative, Singular (great sinner)

• uttama-strīṣu: among noble women
• uttama-strīṣu: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: uttama (प्रातिपदिक) + strī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कर्मधारयः (उत्तमाः स्त्रियः); स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, बहुवचन — Locative plural (among noble women)

• sarvadā: always
• sarvadā: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sarvadā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (कालवाचक) — Indeclinable adverb (always)

• dyūta-kārī: gambler
• dyūta-kārī: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dyūta (प्रातिपदिक) + kārin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुषः (द्यूतं करोति); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — Masculine, Nominative, Singular (gambler)

• sadā: always
• sadā: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sadā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (कालवाचक) — Indeclinable adverb (always)

• mandaḥ: dull, foolish
• mandaḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: manda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — Masculine, Nominative, Singular (dull, foolish)

• kitavaiḥ: with gamblers
• kitavaiḥ: Sahakari (Association/सहकारी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kitava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, बहुवचन — Masculine, Instrumental plural (with gamblers/rogues)

• saha: with
• saha: Sahakari (Association/सहकारी)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: saha (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (सह = with) — Indeclinable postposition

• saṃgataḥ: associated, in company
• saṃgataḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sam-gam (धातु)
• Form: सम्+गम्-धातोः क्त; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — Past participle (associated/kept company)

Speaker

Lomaśa (continuing narration)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kedāra (contextual)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Brāhmaṇa (unnamed)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A cautionary tableau: the sinner amid gamblers and courtesan-like allure, contrasted with an implied distant vision of a serene Śiva-kṣetra—showing the fork between vice and pilgrimage.

Characters & Entities

• Lomaśa
• Kedāra (context)
• Śiva (context)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Adharma grows through lust, gambling, and corrupt companionship—setting the stage for why sacred places and devotion are presented as corrective forces.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kedāra-kṣetra is the narrative frame; the moral contrast heightens the kṣetra’s later role in purification.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit ritual here; it enumerates vices that dharma discourages.