Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 32

Devanagari script

श्रुत्वा कोलाहलं शब्दं कर्णत्रोटनजं तदा । धाविता रक्षकास्तत्र राजशासनकारकाः

Transliteration

śrutvā kolāhalaṃ śabdaṃ karṇatroṭanajaṃ tadā | dhāvitā rakṣakāstatra rājaśāsanakārakāḥ

Translation

Hearing that clamorous sound—arising from the tearing of the ears—then the guards ran there, those charged with enforcing the king’s command.

Word by Word

• श्रुत्वा: having heard
• श्रुत्वा: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial to main action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: श्रु (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (absolutive/gerund), पूर्वकाल (prior action): ‘having heard’

• कोलाहलम्: uproar
• कोलाहलम्: Karma (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कोलाहल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Accusative Singular Neuter)

• शब्दम्: sound
• शब्दम्: Karma (Object; apposition to कोलाहलम्)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शब्द (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Accusative Singular Masculine)

• कर्णत्रोटनजम्: ear-splitting
• कर्णत्रोटनजम्: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier of शब्दम्/कोलाहलम्)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कर्ण (प्रातिपदिक) + त्रोटन (प्रातिपदिक) + ज (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Accusative Singular Neuter); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: कर्णत्रोटनात् जातम् (born from/causing ear-splitting)

• तदा: then
• तदा: Kāla-adhikaraṇa (Time adjunct)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तदा (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (temporal adverb)

• धाविताः: rushed
• धाविताः: Kriyā (Main predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: धाव् (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकर्मणि/भूतकालिक कृदन्त (past participle used finitely), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; कर्तरि प्रयोगे ‘ran/hurried’

• रक्षकाः: guards
• रक्षकाः: Karta (Subject/Agent)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रक्षक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन (Nominative Plural Masculine)

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Deśa-adhikaraṇa (Place adjunct)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय (locative adverb)

• राजशासनकारकाः: executors of the king’s command
• राजशासनकारकाः: Karta (Appositional to रक्षकाः)
• Type: Noun
• Root: राज (प्रातिपदिक) + शासन (प्रातिपदिक) + कारक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: राज्ञः शासनस्य कारकाः (doers/executors of the king’s order)

Speaker

Unspecified narrator within Prabhāsakṣetra Māhātmya (contextual narrator)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Purāṇic audience within the frame

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Guards, alerted by the uproar, rush with urgency through narrow lanes toward the water/ghāṭ, carrying weapons and torches, embodying the king’s authority.

Characters & Entities

• king (rājā)
• guards (rakṣakāḥ)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Rāja-dharma—public protection and swift response to wrongdoing—is portrayed as a necessary pillar supporting social order.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa-kṣetra as the sacred region where the narrative unfolds, linking worldly governance with a tīrtha’s moral atmosphere.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; the verse concerns administrative duty and immediate response to a disturbance.