Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 53

Devanagari script

गजं मत्तमथारुह्य शतदुन्दुभिनादितम् । निमिरभ्यपतत्तूर्णं सुरसैन्यानि लोडयन्

Transliteration

gajaṃ mattamathāruhya śatadundubhināditam | nimirabhyapatattūrṇaṃ surasainyāni loḍayan

Translation

Mounting a rut-maddened elephant, amid the thunder of a hundred war-drums, Nimi rushed forward swiftly, trampling and scattering the armies of the gods.

Word by Word

• गजम्: elephant
• गजम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गज (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (masculine), द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन (singular)

• मत्तम्: intoxicated; rutting
• मत्तम्: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मत्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (masculine), द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन (singular), विशेषण (qualifier of गजम्)

• अथ: then
• अथ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (particle), अनन्तरार्थक (then/thereupon)

• आरुह्य: having mounted
• आरुह्य: Pūrvakāla-kriyā (पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: आ-रुह् (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund/absolutive), पूर्वक्रिया (having mounted)

• शतदुन्दुभिनादितम्: resounded by a hundred drums
• शतदुन्दुभिनादितम्: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शत + दुन्दुभि + नादित (कृदन्त)
• Form: षष्ठी/बहुव्रीहि-सदृश तात्पर्ये तत्पुरुष (शतदुन्दुभिभिः नादितम् = 'resounded by a hundred drums'), द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन (singular), पुंलिङ्ग (masculine), विशेषण (qualifier of गजम्)

• निमिः: Nimi (the king)
• निमिः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: निमि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (masculine), प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन (singular)

• अभ्यपतत्: rushed/charged
• अभ्यपतत्: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: अभि-पत् (धातु)
• Form: लङ् (Imperfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (singular)

• तूर्णम्: swiftly
• तूर्णम्: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तूर्णम् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb), शीघ्रार्थक (quickly)

• सुरसैन्यानि: armies of the gods
• सुरसैन्यानि: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सुर + सैन्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (सुराणां सैन्यानि), नपुंसकलिङ्ग (neuter), द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), बहुवचन (plural)

• लोडयन्: crushing/rolling down; trampling
• लोडयन्: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: लुड्/लोट्? → लोडय् (धातु-णिच् causative)
• Form: वर्तमानकाले शतृ-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (present active participle), प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन (singular), पुंलिङ्ग (masculine), कर्तृवाचक (agreeing with निमिः)

Speaker

Lomaharṣaṇa (Sūta), narrating to the sages (deduced)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Nimi, a fierce leader, mounts a rut-maddened elephant; a hundred dundubhi drums thunder; he rushes forward, the elephant’s feet crushing chariots and scattering the deva host; banners whip in wind, dust rises like smoke.

Characters & Entities

• Nimi
• Devas

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Unchecked pride and violence can appear overwhelming, yet such force is ultimately transient within the larger moral order upheld by the divine.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No sacred site is referenced in this verse.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None.