Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 29

Devanagari script

ततस्तस्याभवत्कंपस्तत्क्षणादेव सन्मुने । अक्षमाला कराग्राच्च पपात धरणीतले

Transliteration

tatastasyābhavatkaṃpastatkṣaṇādeva sanmune | akṣamālā karāgrācca papāta dharaṇītale

Translation

Da begann er in eben diesem Augenblick, o ehrwürdiger Weiser, zu zittern; und die Gebetskette (akṣamālā) fiel ihm aus den Fingerspitzen zu Boden.

Word by Word

• tataḥ: then/thereafter
• tataḥ: Adhikarana (Context/काल-देश-सूचक)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (क्रियाविशेषण) — ‘ततः’ = thereafter

• tasya: of him
• tasya: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन — ‘तस्य’ = of him/of that

• abhavat: arose/occurred
• abhavat: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: bhū (धातु)
• Form: लङ् (Imperfect/Past), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन — ‘अभवत्’ = became/arose

• kampaḥ: tremor/shaking
• kampaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kampa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन — ‘कम्पः’

• tat: that
• tat: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन — ‘तत्’ = that (qualifying ‘क्षणात्’)

• kṣaṇāt: from that moment
• kṣaṇāt: Apadana (Ablative source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṣaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/Ablative), एकवचन — ‘क्षणात्’ = from the moment

• eva: indeed/just
• eva: Sambandha (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (निपात/अवधारण) — emphasis

• sat: O good one
• sat: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/Vocative), एकवचन — ‘सत्’ = O good/virtuous

• mune: O sage
• mune: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: muni (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/Vocative), एकवचन — ‘मुने’

• akṣamālā: rosary (string of beads)
• akṣamālā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: akṣa+mālā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन — ‘अक्षमाला’ (अक्षाणां माला)

• karāgrāt: from the hand’s tip
• karāgrāt: Apadana (Ablative source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kara+agra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/Ablative), एकवचन — ‘कराग्रात्’ = from the tip of the hand

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Conjunction)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (समुच्चय/Conjunction)

• papāta: fell
• papāta: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pat (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन — ‘पपात’ = fell

• dharaṇītale: on the earth/ground
• dharaṇītale: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dharaṇī+tala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन — ‘धरणीतले’ = on the ground

Speaker

Narrator (contextual)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: muni (addressed as san-muni)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A sage in an āśrama near sacred water suddenly trembles; his akṣamālā slips from his fingertips and drops onto the earth, signaling an overpowering inner experience.

Characters & Entities

• Jābāli (implied)
• Akṣamālā (rosary)
• Sage addressed (listener within frame narrative)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

When the mind is shaken by desire, even established practices like japa can falter; steadiness (dhairya) is integral to dharma.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The scene continues at the waterside sacred setting of Jābāli; the verse itself does not provide a named tīrtha.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Japa is implied through the rosary (akṣamālā), showing how spiritual practice can be interrupted by distraction.