Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 19

Devanagari script

अथ ते पन्नगाः क्रुद्धा ददंशुस्तां तपस्विनीम् । समं सर्वेषु गात्रेषु यथान्या प्राकृता स्त्रियम्

Transliteration

atha te pannagāḥ kruddhā dadaṃśustāṃ tapasvinīm | samaṃ sarveṣu gātreṣu yathānyā prākṛtā striyam

Translation

Entonces, aquellas serpientes, enfurecidas, mordieron a esa mujer asceta; la mordieron por igual en todos sus miembros, como si fuera una mujer cualquiera.

Word by Word

• atha: then
• atha: Sambandha (Discourse connective/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atha (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (सम्बन्ध/अनन्तर्य-बोधक)

• te: they
• te: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• pannagāḥ: serpents
• pannagāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pannaga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• kruddhāḥ: angry
• kruddhāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √krudh (क्रुध्) + kta (क्त)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; ‘angered’ (pannagāḥ इत्यस्य)

• dadaṃśuḥ: bit
• dadaṃśuḥ: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √daṃś (दंश्)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect/परोक्षभूत), परस्मैपद; तृतीय-पुरुष, बहुवचन

• tām: her
• tām: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• tapasvinīm: the ascetic woman
• tapasvinīm: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tapasvinī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेष्य-सम्बन्धे ‘ascetic woman’

• samam: evenly
• samam: Kriyā-viśeṣaṇa (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (क्रियाविशेषण: evenly)

• sarveṣu: in all
• sarveṣu: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, बहुवचन; विशेषण (gātreṣu)

• gātreṣu: limbs
• gātreṣu: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gātra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• yathā: as, like
• yathā: Upamāna (Comparison marker/उपमान)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (उपमान/प्रकार-वाचक)

• anyā: another, ordinary
• anyā: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: anya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; ‘another/ordinary’ (striyam इत्यस्य विशेषणार्थे)

• prākṛtā: common, natural
• prākṛtā: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: prākṛta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषण

• striyam: woman
• striyam: Upameya (Standard of comparison/उपमेय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: strī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; उपमेय (as an ordinary woman)

Speaker

Narrator (contextual; within Nāgarakhaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya discourse)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Multiple nāgas, enraged, strike the ascetic woman across her limbs; she stands steady, eyes lowered in composure, while the serpents’ aggression appears strangely futile—foreshadowing their own pain.

Characters & Entities

• pannaga (serpents)
• tapasvinī (ascetic woman)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Worldly beings misjudge saints as ordinary; dharma warns that such contempt leads to fear and downfall.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The wider adhyāya belongs to a tīrtha-māhātmya setting, but this verse alone does not name the site.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it narrates an encounter highlighting the force of tapas and divine protection.