Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 13

Devanagari script

अथ तस्य समालोक्य रूपं गात्रसमुद्भवम् । अदृष्टपूर्वं तापस्यः सर्वाः कामवशं गताः

Transliteration

atha tasya samālokya rūpaṃ gātrasamudbhavam | adṛṣṭapūrvaṃ tāpasyaḥ sarvāḥ kāmavaśaṃ gatāḥ

Translation

Als sie dann die Schönheit seines Leibes erblickten, wie sie zuvor nie gesehen worden war, gerieten alle Asketinnen unter die Herrschaft des Begehrens.

Word by Word

• atha: then
• atha: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atha (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, आरम्भ/अनन्तर (now/then)

• tasya: of him
• tasya: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (Genitive/6th), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• samālokya: having looked at
• samālokya: Pūrvakāla-kriyā (पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sam-ā-lok (धातु) + lyap (ल्यप्)
• Form: ल्यबन्त अव्यय (gerund)

• rūpam: form, appearance
• rūpam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rūpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• gātrasamudbhavam: arising from the body
• gātrasamudbhavam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: gātra (प्रातिपदिक) + samudbhava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (gātrāt samudbhavam = arising from the limbs/body); विशेषण (qualifying rūpam)

• adṛṣṭapūrvam: never seen before
• adṛṣṭapūrvam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a-dṛṣṭa (कृदन्त) + pūrva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; कर्मधारय (adṛṣṭaṃ pūrvam = never seen before); विशेषण (qualifying rūpam)

• tāpasyaḥ: female ascetics
• tāpasyaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tāpasī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• sarvāḥ: all
• sarvāḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषण (qualifying tāpasyaḥ)

• kāmavaśam: under desire's sway
• kāmavaśam: Gati/Karma (गति/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāma (प्रातिपदिक) + vaśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष (kāmasya vaśam = under the control of desire)

• gatāḥ: went, became
• gatāḥ: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: gam (धातु) + kta (कृत् प्रत्यय)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त) प्रयोगः; स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; 'गम्' धातोः क्त-प्रत्ययः, भावे/स्थित्यर्थे (having gone/come to a state)

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) — deductive attribution

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Rudra’s extraordinary beauty captivates the women ascetics; their faces shift from composure to desire and astonishment, indicating an inner fall from restraint.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva (implied)
• Tāpasyaḥ (women ascetics)
• Kāma (desire)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

External austerity is incomplete without inner mastery; the episode highlights vigilance over desire even in holy places.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Nāgarakhaṇḍa āśrama-tīrtha where Śiva’s presence becomes a catalyst for spiritual testing and teaching.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; the verse conveys a psychological and ethical teaching within the tīrtha narrative.