Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 3

Devanagari script

त्वां दृष्ट्वाहं महाभाग कामदेव समाकृतिम् । पुलकांचितसर्वांगी कामबाणप्रपीडिता

Transliteration

tvāṃ dṛṣṭvāhaṃ mahābhāga kāmadeva samākṛtim | pulakāṃcitasarvāṃgī kāmabāṇaprapīḍitā

Translation

Seeing you, O blessed one—whose form resembles Kāmadeva—I tremble in every limb, my skin bristling, tormented by the arrows of desire.

Word by Word

• त्वाम्: you
• त्वाम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: युष्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative), एकवचन

• दृष्ट्वा: having seen
• दृष्ट्वा: Sambandha (Prior action/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: दृश् (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (absolutive/gerund)

• अहम्: I
• अहम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• महाभाग: O fortunate one
• महाभाग: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महाभाग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्मधारय (honorific)

• कामदेव: O Kāma-deva (Cupid)
• कामदेव: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: काम (प्रातिपदिक) + देव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन-विभक्ति, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: ‘कामस्य देवः’ (name of Cupid)

• समाकृतिम्: form; appearance
• समाकृतिम्: Karma (Object complement/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सम्-आ-√कृ (धातु) → आकृति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• पुलकांचितसर्वांगी: she whose whole body is bristling (with horripilation)
• पुलकांचितसर्वांगी: Karta (Subject predicate/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पुलक (प्रातिपदिक) + अञ्चित (कृदन्त; √अञ्च्) + सर्व (प्रातिपदिक) + अङ्ग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; बहुव्रीहि: ‘पुलकेन अञ्चितानि सर्वाणि अङ्गानि यस्याः सा’

• कामबाणप्रपीडिता: tormented by Cupid’s arrows
• कामबाणप्रपीडिता: Karta (Predicate/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: काम (प्रातिपदिक) + बाण (प्रातिपदिक) + प्र-पीड् (धातु)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (PPP) ‘प्रपीडित’; स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; तृतीया-तत्पुरुषार्थः: ‘कामबाणैः प्रपीडिता’

Speaker

Menakā

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: mahābhāga (the man compared to Kāmadeva)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Menakā gazes at the man likened to Kāmadeva; her body shows gooseflesh, her expression a mix of longing and distress; the sacred riverbank and shrine remain calm behind the emotional storm.

Characters & Entities

• Menakā
• Kāmadeva

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

It dramatizes how desire arises through perception, highlighting why disciplines like brahmacarya stress vigilance of the senses.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The tīrtha context is present via the chapter setting, but the site name is not contained in this single verse.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it is a narrative confession of attraction that sets up the ascetic’s dharmic response.