Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 4

Devanagari script

स कदाचिन्नृपश्रेष्ठ मृगासक्तोऽर्बुदं गतः । अपश्यत्सानुदेशे च मृगीं शिशुसमावृताम्

Transliteration

sa kadācinnṛpaśreṣṭha mṛgāsakto'rbudaṃ gataḥ | apaśyatsānudeśe ca mṛgīṃ śiśusamāvṛtām

Translation

Once, O best of kings, obsessed with the chase, he went to Arbuda. There, in a wooded tract on the slopes, he saw a doe surrounded by her fawns.

Word by Word

• सः: he
• सः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (Nominative); एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• कदाचित्: once
• कदाचित्: Kriya-visheshana (Temporal/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: कदाचित् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक (adverb: once/sometime)

• नृपश्रेष्ठ: O best of kings
• नृपश्रेष्ठ: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नृप + श्रेष्ठ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन (Vocative); एकवचन; समासः—नृपाणां श्रेष्ठः

• मृगासक्तः: attached to deer (hunting-crazed)
• मृगासक्तः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मृग + आसक्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन; समासः—मृगे आसक्तः (attached to hunting/deer)

• अर्बुदम्: to Arbuda (mountain/region)
• अर्बुदम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अर्बुद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (Accusative); एकवचन

• गतः: gone
• गतः: Karta (Subject complement/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: गम् (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past participle); पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन; कर्तरि (gone)

• अपश्यत्: saw
• अपश्यत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दृश् (धातु)
• Form: लङ् (Imperfect/Past); प्रथमपुरुष; एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• सानुदेशे: in a nearby region
• सानुदेशे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स + अनुदेश (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; सप्तमी (Locative); एकवचन; अव्ययीभावः—स- (सह/सम्) + अनुदेश (region)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय (conjunction)

• मृगीम्: a doe
• मृगीम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मृगी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (Accusative); एकवचन

• शिशुसमावृताम्: surrounded by young ones
• शिशुसमावृताम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शिशु + समावृत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; द्वितीया; एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त; समासः—शिशुभिः समावृता (surrounded by fawns)

Speaker

Paulastya

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Arbuda

Type: peak

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: A king (श्रेष्ठ नृप) addressed within the frame

Visual Art Cues

Scene: On Arbuda’s wooded slope, the hunter-king spots a doe encircled by her fawns—an image of innocence framed against a sacred mountain landscape.

Characters & Entities

• Arbuda
• Suprabha (king)
• doe (mṛgī)
• fawns (śiśu)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

A moral turning point is staged: the hunter meets vulnerable life, preparing the narrative for remorse, correction, and tīrtha-based purification.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Arbuda region is the setting within which Kapilā Tīrtha’s māhātmya unfolds.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it sets the scene for the ensuing event.