Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 71

Devanagari script

कारा संतानकूटस्य संसारवनवागुरा । स्वर्गमार्गमहागर्ता पुंसां स्त्री वेधसा कृता

Transliteration

kārā saṃtānakūṭasya saṃsāravanavāgurā | svargamārgamahāgartā puṃsāṃ strī vedhasā kṛtā

Translation

Vom Schöpfer wurde die Frau für die Männer gemacht als Gefängnis des Haufens an Nachkommenschaft, als Schlinge im Wald des Saṃsāra und als große Grube auf dem Weg zum Himmel.

Word by Word

• kārā: a prison
• kārā: Karta (Predicate nominative/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kārā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• saṃtāna-kūṭasya: of the peak of progeny/lineage
• saṃtāna-kūṭasya: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: saṃtāna (प्रातिपदिक) + kūṭa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (saṃtānasya kūṭaḥ)

• saṃsāra-vana-vāgurā: a snare in the forest of worldly existence
• saṃsāra-vana-vāgurā: Karta (Predicate nominative/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: saṃsāra (प्रातिपदिक) + vana (प्रातिपदिक) + vāgurā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष (saṃsāravana-viṣayā vāgurā)

• svarga-mārga-mahā-gartā: a great pit on the path to heaven
• svarga-mārga-mahā-gartā: Karta (Predicate nominative/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: svarga (प्रातिपदिक) + mārga (प्रातिपदिक) + mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + gartā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष (svargamārge mahā gartā)

• puṃsām: of men
• puṃsām: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pumān (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), बहुवचन

• strī: woman
• strī: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: strī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• vedhasā: by the Creator (Brahmā)
• vedhasā: Karana (Agent in passive/कर्तृकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vedhas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन; विशेषनाम (Brahmā/Creator)

• kṛtā: made/created
• kṛtā: Kriyā (Predicate participle)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kṛ (धातु)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (क्त), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; कर्मणि (made/created)

Speaker

Unspecified (didactic narrator voice in Nāgarakhaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A traveler on a bright ‘svarga-path’ approaches a hidden pit; nearby a dense forest labeled saṃsāra holds nets and traps; a prison-like enclosure is formed from a ‘heap of progeny’ as symbolic stones or cradles stacked high.

Characters & Entities

• Vedhā (Brahmā)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Attachment and entanglement are portrayed as bondage; one should pursue dharma with restraint and aim for liberation beyond worldly nets.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No particular tīrtha is mentioned in the verse; it is part of the moral-philosophical framing within the Māhātmya.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it is a doctrinal statement using strong imagery.