Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 33

Devanagari script

रक्तशृंगो गिरिः कोऽयं संक्षिप्तस्तत्र तेन यः । मानुषाणां भयं तस्य कतमस्य शचीपतेः

Transliteration

raktaśṛṃgo giriḥ ko'yaṃ saṃkṣiptastatra tena yaḥ | mānuṣāṇāṃ bhayaṃ tasya katamasya śacīpateḥ

Translation

„Was ist dies für ein Berg namens Raktśṛṅga, den er dort hinabwarf? Warum wurde er dorthin geschleudert? Aus welcher Tat des Herrn der Śacī (Indra) entstand Furcht unter den Menschen?“

Word by Word

• rakta-śṛṅgaḥ: Raktaśṛṅga (Red-horn)
• rakta-śṛṅgaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rakta (प्रातिपदिक) + śṛṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समासः कर्मधारयः; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचनम्

• giriḥ: mountain
• giriḥ: Apposition (Karta-support)
• Type: Noun
• Root: giri (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचनम्

• kaḥ: who/what
• kaḥ: Karta (Interrogative subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रश्नवाचक-सर्वनाम, पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचनम्

• ayam: this
• ayam: Karta (Deictic)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचनम्

• saṃkṣiptaḥ: thrown/placed, cast down
• saṃkṣiptaḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sam-√kṣip (धातु √kṣip) → saṃkṣipta (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचनम्; विशेषणम् (giriḥ/raktaśṛṅgaḥ)

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक-अव्यय (locative adverb)

• tena: by him/with that
• tena: Karana/Karta (Agent-instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, पुं/नपुंसक, तृतीया (3rd/करण), एकवचनम्

• yaḥ: who/which
• yaḥ: Karta (Relative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सम्बन्धवाचक-सर्वनाम, पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचनम्

• mānuṣāṇām: of humans
• mānuṣāṇām: Sambandha (Genitive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mānuṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), बहुवचनम्

• bhayam: fear
• bhayam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचनम्

• tasya: of him/of that
• tasya: Sambandha (Genitive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, पुं/नपुंसक, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), एकवचनम्

• katamasya: of which (one) / of which among
• katamasya: Sambandha (Genitive interrogative)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: katama (प्रातिपदिक; kim + tama)
• Form: प्रश्नवाचक-विशेषण, पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), एकवचनम्; विशेषणम् (śacīpateḥ)

• śacī-pateḥ: of Śacī’s lord (Indra)
• śacī-pateḥ: Sambandha (Genitive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śacī (प्रातिपदिक) + pati (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (śacyāḥ patiḥ); पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), एकवचनम्

Speaker

Ṛṣis (sages)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Raktśṛṅga

Type: peak

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Sūta

Visual Art Cues

Scene: The sages press for identification of Raktśṛṅga and the reason Indra cast it there, asking which act of Indra caused fear among humans; the storyteller’s circle tightens with suspense.

Characters & Entities

• Raktaśṛṅga (mountain)
• Indra (Śacīpati)
• Śacī

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sacred landscapes in Purāṇas are tied to moral causality—events, fears, and protections arise from past deeds and divine actions.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse points to a locality associated with the Raktśṛṅga mountain and a cavern, setting up the tīrtha’s mythic origin story.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it is an inquiry that prepares for the tīrtha’s māhātmya and any ensuing prescriptions.