Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 81

Devanagari script

उपहासकरं वाक्यं पौलस्त्यस्य तदा सुराः । मया तदा हि शप्तोऽसौ रावणो लोकरावणः

Transliteration

upahāsakaraṃ vākyaṃ paulastyasya tadā surāḥ | mayā tadā hi śapto'sau rāvaṇo lokarāvaṇaḥ

Translation

O ihr Götter! Damals, wegen eines spöttischen Wortes jenes Paulastya (Rāvaṇa), verfluchte ich ihn sogleich—Rāvaṇa, den Bedränger der Welten.

Word by Word

• उपहासकरम्: mocking; causing ridicule
• उपहासकरम्: Qualifier (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उपहास + कर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे द्वितीया-एकवचनम् (Neuter, Accusative, Singular); विशेषणम्

• वाक्यम्: speech/statement
• वाक्यम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वाक्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे द्वितीया-एकवचनम् (Neuter, Accusative, Singular)

• पौलस्त्यस्य: of Paulastya (Rāvaṇa)
• पौलस्त्यस्य: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पौलस्त्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे षष्ठी-एकवचनम् (Masculine, Genitive, Singular)

• तदा: then
• तदा: Adverbial
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तदा (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्ययम् (temporal adverb)

• सुराः: the gods
• सुराः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सुर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा-बहुवचनम् (Masculine, Nominative, Plural)

• मया: by me
• मया: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: त्रिलिङ्गे तृतीया-एकवचनम् (Instrumental, Singular)

• तदा: then
• तदा: Adverbial
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तदा (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्ययम् (temporal adverb)

• हि: indeed
• हि: Discourse particle
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: हि (अव्यय)
• Form: निपातः (emphatic particle)

• शप्तः: cursed
• शप्तः: Predicate (विधेय)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √शप् (धातु) → शप्त (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक, क्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा-एकवचनम् (Masculine, Nominative, Singular); क्त-प्रत्ययान्तः (cursed)

• असौ: that (he)
• असौ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: असद्/अदस् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा-एकवचनम् (Masculine, Nominative, Singular)

• रावणः: Rāvaṇa
• रावणः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रावण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा-एकवचनम् (Masculine, Nominative, Singular)

• लोकरावणः: the terror of the worlds
• लोकरावणः: Apposition (समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: लोक + रावण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे प्रथमा-एकवचनम् (Masculine, Nominative, Singular); उपाधि/विशेषणवत्

Speaker

Nandin (to the Devas/Suras)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kedāra (frame)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Suras/devas addressed; also Brahman interlocutor in frame continuity

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Rāvaṇa speaks mockingly; devas react; the sage raises a hand in pronouncement of a curse—air thick with moral gravity.

Characters & Entities

• Rāvaṇa
• Pulastya
• Nandin
• Suras (Devas)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Derisive speech and pride invite downfall; dharma places strong moral weight on how power is used and how others are addressed.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The setting remains Kedārakhaṇḍa (Kedāra), where the sanctity of the place frames moral causality in the narrative.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; the verse highlights ethical restraint in speech rather than a ritual act.