Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 12

Devanagari script

चीरिकाविरुतैर्दीर्घै रुदंत इव चापरे । हस्तिहस्तहता वृक्षा मन्यन्ते यस्य सानुषु

Transliteration

cīrikāvirutairdīrghai rudaṃta iva cāpare | hastihastahatā vṛkṣā manyante yasya sānuṣu

Translation

And others, hearing the long cries of cīrikā birds, think that the trees upon its slopes—struck down by the hands (trunks) of elephants—are as though weeping.

Word by Word

• cīrikā-virutaiḥ: with cīrikā-bird calls
• cīrikā-virutaiḥ: Karaṇa (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: cīrikā (प्रातिपदिक) + viruta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समासः (तत्पुरुषः: ‘with the cries of cīrikā-birds’), नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), तृतीया (Instrumental/3rd), बहुवचन (Plural)

• dīrghaiḥ: long, prolonged
• dīrghaiḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dīrgha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), तृतीया (Instrumental/3rd), बहुवचन (Plural); विशेषणम् virutaiḥ प्रति

• rudantaḥ: crying
• rudantaḥ: Karta (Agent/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: rud (धातु) + śatṛ (कृदन्त)
• Form: वर्तमानकाले शतृ-प्रत्ययान्त (Present active participle), पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), बहुवचन (Plural)

• iva: as if
• iva: Upamā (Simile marker/उपमा)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iva (अव्यय)
• Form: उपमावाचक-अव्यय

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• apare: others
• apare: Karta (Agent/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: apara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), बहुवचन (Plural)

• hasti-hasta-hatāḥ: beaten by elephants’ trunks
• hasti-hasta-hatāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: hastin (प्रातिपदिक) + hasta (प्रातिपदिक) + hata (कृदन्त: √han)
• Form: समासः (तत्पुरुषः: ‘struck by elephants’ hands/trunks’), पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), बहुवचन (Plural); विशेषणम् vṛkṣāḥ प्रति

• vṛkṣāḥ: trees
• vṛkṣāḥ: Karta (Agent/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vṛkṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), बहुवचन (Plural)

• manyante: think, consider
• manyante: Kriyā (Predicate action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: man (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), बहुवचन (Plural)

• yasya: whose
• yasya: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (Genitive/6th), एकवचन (Singular)

• sānuṣu: on the slopes
• sānuṣu: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sānu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), सप्तमी (Locative/7th), बहुवचन (Plural)

Speaker

Sūta (contextual continuation)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: peak

Visual Art Cues

Scene: On a slope, elephants have pushed or struck trees; cīrikā birds cry in long notes; observers interpret the scene as trees ‘weeping’. The air feels plaintive yet sacred.

Characters & Entities

• Vindhya (Mountain)
• Cīrikā birds
• Elephants

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The purāṇic gaze reads spiritual meaning in the natural world, turning forest sounds into contemplative symbolism.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Vindhya’s slopes are portrayed as vivid and alive—filled with birds, elephants, and evocative natural scenes.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it is descriptive māhātmya, preparing the listener for the sacred episode to follow.