Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 70

Devanagari script

शून्यास्ते नरकाः सर्वे संबभूवुर्यमस्य ये । यज्ञभागविहीनाश्च देवाः कष्टमुपागताः

Transliteration

śūnyāste narakāḥ sarve saṃbabhūvuryamasya ye | yajñabhāgavihīnāśca devāḥ kaṣṭamupāgatāḥ

Translation

Alle Höllen, die Yama gehören, wurden leer; und die Götter, ihrer ihnen zustehenden Opferanteile beraubt, gerieten in Not.

Word by Word

• शून्याः: empty
• शून्याः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शून्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन — Masculine, Nominative, Plural; agreeing with नरकाः

• ते: those
• ते: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन — Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• नरकाः: hells
• नरकाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नरक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन — Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• सर्वे: all
• सर्वे: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन — Masculine, Nominative, Plural; agreeing with नरकाः

• संबभूवुः: became
• संबभूवुः: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम्-√भू (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (परोक्षभूत), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन — Perfect, 3rd person plural

• यमस्य: of Yama
• यमस्य: Sambandha (Possessor/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, एकवचन — Masculine, Genitive, Singular

• ये: which
• ये: Karta (Relative subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन — Masculine, Nominative, Plural; relative pronoun referring to नरकाः

• यज्ञभागविहीनाः: deprived of sacrificial shares
• यज्ञभागविहीनाः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: यज्ञ + भाग + विहीन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन — Masculine, Nominative, Plural; agreeing with देवाः; (यज्ञभागेन विहीनाः)

• च: and
• च: Samuccaya (Conjunction/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (समुच्चय) — conjunction

• देवाः: the gods
• देवाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन — Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• कष्टम्: distress/trouble
• कष्टम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कष्ट (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन — Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• उपागताः: came to/reached
• उपागताः: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: उप-√गम् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (क्त-प्रत्यय), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन — past participle ‘having reached/come to’, agreeing with देवाः

Speaker

Pulastya (narrator) (deduced from nearby 'Pulastya uvāca')

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Nṛpa-sattama (king)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Empty, silent hells with vacant tortures and abandoned instruments; Yama’s realm eerily quiet. In contrast, devas appear weakened, their splendor dimmed, lacking sacrificial offerings.

Characters & Entities

• Yama
• naraka
• deva
• yajñabhāga
• yajña

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Ritual order (yajña) is linked with cosmic order: when sacrificial duty collapses, both punishment systems and divine nourishment are disrupted.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The passage belongs to Arbuda-khaṇḍa, situating the teaching within the Mount Arbuda sacred landscape though this verse emphasizes cosmic consequences rather than a single shrine.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

The concept of yajñabhāga (the gods’ sacrificial portion) is highlighted, implying the necessity of maintaining yajña rites.