Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 22

Devanagari script

तावन्न दृश्यते च्छाया द्वितीया स्त्रीवधोद्भवा । लघुत्वं सर्वगात्राणि संप्राप्तानि महीपते

Transliteration

tāvanna dṛśyate cchāyā dvitīyā strīvadhodbhavā | laghutvaṃ sarvagātrāṇi saṃprāptāni mahīpate

Translation

Da war jener zweite Schatten—entsprungen aus der Sünde, eine Frau getötet zu haben—nicht mehr zu sehen; und Leichtigkeit erfüllte all seine Glieder, o Herr der Erde.

Word by Word

• तावत्: so long; until then
• तावत्: Adhikarana (Temporal/कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तावत् (प्रातिपदिक/अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (काल/परिमाणवाचक अव्यय), अर्थः—'तावद्/एतावद्' (so long/that much)

• न: not
• न: Sambandha (Negation/निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक अव्यय (negative particle)

• दृश्यते: is seen; appears
• दृश्यते: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दृश् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (वर्तमानकाल), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; कर्मणि-प्रयोग (passive): 'is seen/appears'

• छाया: shadow
• छाया: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: छाया (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• द्वितीया: second
• द्वितीया: Visheshana (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: द्वितीय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifying छाया)

• स्त्रीवधोद्भवा: arisen from the killing of a woman
• स्त्रीवधोद्भवा: Visheshana (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स्त्री (प्रातिपदिक) + वध (प्रातिपदिक) + उद्भव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (स्त्रीवधस्य उद्भवा) विशेषणम् (qualifying छाया)

• लघुत्वम्: lightness
• लघुत्वम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: लघुत्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st)/द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; भाववाचक (abstract noun)

• सर्वगात्राणि: all limbs
• सर्वगात्राणि: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक) + गात्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st)/द्वितीया (2nd), बहुवचन; कर्मधारयः (सर्वाणि गात्राणि)

• संप्राप्तानि: have come upon; have been attained
• संप्राप्तानि: Kriya (Predicative participle/क्रियाविशेषण-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम् + प्र + आप् (धातु) → संप्राप्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकृत् (क्त) कृदन्त/भूतकालिक-विशेषण; नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; 'having been attained/come upon' (agreeing with सर्वगात्राणि)

• महीपते: O king
• महीपते: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महीपतिः (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (महीयाः पतिः)

Speaker

Sūta (deduced)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Raktānubandha

Type: kund

Visual Art Cues

Scene: After bathing, the king stands astonished as his uncanny ‘second shadow’ is absent; his posture becomes lighter, face clearer; attendants and sages notice the change.

Characters & Entities

• strīvadha (woman-slaying) as mahāpātaka
• bhūmipa/mahīpati (king)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Grave karmic burdens manifest in life, yet tīrtha-grace and dharmic acts can bring perceptible relief and purification.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Raktānubandha Tīrtha on Arbuda, whose snāna is shown to remove visible marks of pāpa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Implied snāna-phala: bathing at the tīrtha yields pāpa-kṣaya signs (the ‘second shadow’ vanishes, bodily lightness arises).