Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 34

Devanagari script

भैरवी भीषणाकारा चंडमुंडासिधारिणी । भूतप्रिया महाकाया घटाली विक्रमोत्कटा

Transliteration

bhairavī bhīṣaṇākārā caṃḍamuṃḍāsidhāriṇī | bhūtapriyā mahākāyā ghaṭālī vikramotkaṭā

Translation

Du bist Bhairavī, von schrecklicher Gestalt, die das Schwert trägt, das Caṇḍa und Muṇḍa erschlug. Du bist den Bhūtas lieb, von gewaltigem Leib, die Glocke tragend, und mächtig an Tapferkeit.

Word by Word

• bhairavī: Bhairavī
• bhairavī: Pradhāna-nāma (Predicate nominative/विशेष्य)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhairavī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular)

• bhīṣaṇākārā: of terrifying form
• bhīṣaṇākārā: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bhīṣaṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + ākāra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); कर्मधारय ('terrible' + 'form'); विशेषण (qualifying Devī)

• caṇḍamuṇḍāsidhāriṇī: bearer of the sword (against) Caṇḍa and Muṇḍa
• caṇḍamuṇḍāsidhāriṇī: Pradhāna-nāma (Predicate nominative/विशेष्य)
• Type: Noun
• Root: caṇḍa (प्रातिपदिक) + muṇḍa (प्रातिपदिक) + asi (प्रातिपदिक) + dhāriṇī (प्रातिपदिक; √dhṛ (धातु) + णिनि)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); तत्पुरुष (determinative: 'sword-bearing (asi-dhāriṇī) [of/for] Caṇḍa and Muṇḍa' / 'bearing the sword (used against) Caṇḍa-Muṇḍa')

• bhūtapriyā: beloved of beings/spirits
• bhūtapriyā: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bhūta (प्रातिपदिक) + priyā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); तत्पुरुष ('dear to beings/spirits'); विशेषण

• mahākāyā: huge-bodied
• mahākāyā: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + kāya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); कर्मधारय ('great-bodied'); विशेषण

• ghaṭālī: Ghaṭālī (a name/epithet)
• ghaṭālī: Pradhāna-nāma (Predicate nominative/विशेष्य)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ghaṭālī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular)

• vikramotkaṭā: fierce in prowess
• vikramotkaṭā: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vikrama (प्रातिपदिक) + utkaṭa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); तत्पुरुष/कर्मधारयार्थ ('fierce in valour'); विशेषण

Speaker

Devas (collective hymn of praise, implied from context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Arbuda-kṣetra (contextual)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Bhairavī stands vast-bodied, eyes blazing, holding a sword associated with the fall of Caṇḍa and Muṇḍa; around her gather bhūtas as attendants; a bell (ghaṇṭā) hangs or is held, signaling both warning and sanctification.

Characters & Entities

• Devī
• Bhairavī
• Caṇḍa
• Muṇḍa
• Bhūtas

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Devī’s fierceness is compassionate protection—her terrifying form exists to destroy adharma and guard the righteous.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Arbuda sacred region is the narrative setting; this verse itself is primarily theological (stuti) rather than a tīrtha-description.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly; the implied practice is recitation and remembrance of Devī’s names and deeds.