Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 48

Devanagari script

ततो लतानि कुंजे तं समानीय मुनीश्वरम् । कामशास्त्रोदितैर्भावै रराम कृत्रिमैर्मुनिम्

Transliteration

tato latāni kuṃje taṃ samānīya munīśvaram | kāmaśāstroditairbhāvai rarāma kṛtrimairmunim

Translation

Then, leading the lordly sage into a bower veiled with vines, she sported with the muni, assuming contrived moods as taught in the treatises of desire (kāmaśāstra).

Word by Word

• tataḥ: then
• tataḥ: Sambandha (Adverbial/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: ततः-शब्दः, अव्यय (thereupon/then)

• latāni: creepers/vines
• latāni: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: latā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (कर्म), बहुवचन

• kuñje: in a grove
• kuñje: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kuñja (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (अधिकरण), एकवचन

• tam: him
• tam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (कर्म), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• samānīya: having brought
• samānīya: Kriya (Gerund/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-ā√nī (धातु) + ल्यप् (ल्यप्-प्रत्यय)
• Form: ल्यपन्त-अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund), पूर्वकालिक-क्रिया; ‘having brought/led’

• munīśvaram: lord of sages
• munīśvaram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: muni (प्रातिपदिक) + īśvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (कर्म), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (मुनीनां ईश्वरः)

• kāma-śāstra-uditaiḥ: taught in erotic treatises
• kāma-śāstra-uditaiḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kāma (प्रातिपदिक) + śāstra (प्रातिपदिक) + udita (प्रातिपदिक/कृदन्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (करण), बहुवचन; तत्पुरुष (कामशास्त्रे उदितैः = ‘taught in the Kāma-śāstra’) विशेषण

• bhāvaiḥ: with gestures/expressions
• bhāvaiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhāva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (करण), बहुवचन

• rarāma: she delighted/played (with)
• rarāma: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ram (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (परोक्शभूत/परफेक्ट), प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• kṛtrimaiḥ: artificial/feigned
• kṛtrimaiḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kṛtrima (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (करण), बहुवचन; विशेषण

• munim: the sage
• munim: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: muni (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (कर्म), एकवचन

Speaker

Narrator (Purāṇic voice)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: She leads the sage into a dense vine-bower; inside, she performs learned gestures and moods—smiles, feigned shyness, playful glances—turning the grove into a stage of desire.

Characters & Entities

• Munīśvara (the sage)
• Kāmaśāstra

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

It depicts how crafted sensuality can destabilize tapas, warning that external settings and cultivated stimuli can intensify inner weakness.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No particular tīrtha is named in this verse.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None.