Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 94

Devanagari script

गम्भीर नूपुरध्वानप्रवृद्धोद्धततांडवा । उन्मत्तनेत्रचरणा यात्येषा डिम्भमण्डली

Transliteration

gambhīra nūpuradhvānapravṛddhoddhatatāṃḍavā | unmattanetracaraṇā yātyeṣā ḍimbhamaṇḍalī

Translation

In wildem Tāṇḍava, noch rasender durch den tiefen Klang ihrer Fußglöckchen—mit wahnsinnigen Augen und Schritten—zieht diese Bande von Elenden weiter.

Word by Word

• gambhīra: deep, grave
• gambhīra: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: gambhīra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; विशेषण (ḍimbhamaṇḍalī/eṣā)

• nūpura-dhvāna-pravṛddha-uddhata-tāṇḍavā: whose wild dance is intensified by the sound of anklets
• nūpura-dhvāna-pravṛddha-uddhata-tāṇḍavā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nūpura (प्रातिपदिक) + dhvāna (प्रातिपदिक) + pravṛddha (प्रातिपदिक/कृदन्त-प्रयोग) + uddhata (प्रातिपदिक) + tāṇḍava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; विशेषण (eṣā/ḍimbhamaṇḍalī); समासः—नूपुरध्वानप्रवृद्धोद्धतताण्डवा (बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः/कर्मधारय-प्रायः: ‘नूपुरध्वानेन प्रवृद्धम्, उद्धतं ताण्डवं यस्याः’)

• unmatta-netra-caraṇā: with frenzied eyes and feet
• unmatta-netra-caraṇā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: unmatta (प्रातिपदिक) + netra (प्रातिपदिक) + caraṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; विशेषण (eṣā/ḍimbhamaṇḍalī); समासः—उन्मत्तनेत्रचरणा (कर्मधारयः: ‘उन्मत्ते नेत्रे च चरणौ च यस्याः’)

• yāti: goes, moves
• yāti: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √yā (या, धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• eṣā: this (she)
• eṣā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• ḍimbhamaṇḍalī: a group of children
• ḍimbhamaṇḍalī: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ḍimbha (प्रातिपदिक) + maṇḍalī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; समासः—डिम्भमण्डली (तत्पुरुषः: ‘डिम्भानां मण्डली’ = group of children)

Speaker

Unspecified (narrative voice within Sūta’s recitation in Prabhāsa Khaṇḍa context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A frenzied dancer’s tāṇḍava dominates the frame; anklets emit a deep, almost drum-like resonance; eyes are wild, feet stamping; behind her, a disorderly group advances like a grim troupe.

Characters & Entities

• Tāṇḍava

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Frenzied, uncontrolled conduct symbolizes tamas and adharma; the Purāṇa uses such imagery to provoke discernment and restraint.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The passage sits within Prabhāsakṣetra-māhātmya, the glorification of Prabhāsa as a sacred domain of dharma-teaching.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it is descriptive imagery.