Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 7

Devanagari script

एवमुक्ता वरारोहा स्त्रीस्वभावात्सुचञ्चला । मनसाध्याय शक्रं सा कामेन कलुषीकृता

Transliteration

evamuktā varārohā strīsvabhāvātsucañcalā | manasādhyāya śakraṃ sā kāmena kaluṣīkṛtā

Translation

Ainsi interpellée, la belle aux hanches—instable selon la nature humaine—se mit à contempler Śakra en son esprit ; le désir la souilla d’une impureté intérieure.

Word by Word

• evam: thus
• evam: Sambandha (Manner/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: evam (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, प्रकारवाचक (adverb)

• uktā: addressed/spoken to
• uktā: Karta (Subject-qualifier/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vac (धातु) → ukta (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकृदन्तः (क्त), स्त्रीलिङ्गे, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्; कर्मणि—‘(सा) उक्ता’ = having been spoken to

• vara-ārohā: the fair-hipped woman
• vara-ārohā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vara (प्रातिपदिक) + āroha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्गे, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्; कर्मधारयः

• strī-svabhāvāt: due to womanly nature
• strī-svabhāvāt: Hetu (Cause/हेतु)
• Type: Noun
• Root: strī (प्रातिपदिक) + svabhāva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, पञ्चमी (5th/Ablative), एकवचनम्; तत्पुरुषः—‘स्त्रियाः स्वभावः’

• su-cañcalā: very fickle
• su-cañcalā: Karta (Subject-qualifier/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: su (प्रातिपदिक-पूर्वपद) + cañcala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्गे, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्; कर्मधारयः

• manasā: with (her) mind
• manasā: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: manas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, तृतीया, एकवचनम्

• dhyāya: having thought/meditated on
• dhyāya: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dhyai (धातु)
• Form: ल्यप्-प्रत्ययान्त-अव्ययभावः (absolutive/gerund), परस्मैपद-आधारः; ‘ध्यानं कृत्वा’

• śakram: Śakra (Indra)
• śakram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śakra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, द्वितीया, एकवचनम्

• sā: she
• sā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्गे, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्; सर्वनाम-रूपम्

• kāmena: by desire/lust
• kāmena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāma (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, तृतीया, एकवचनम्

• kaluṣī-kṛtā: made impure/tainted
• kaluṣī-kṛtā: Karta (Subject-qualifier/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kaluṣa (प्रातिपदिक) + kṛ (धातु) → kṛta (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकृदन्तः (क्त), स्त्रीलिङ्गे, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्; नामधातु-प्रयोगः/कृदन्त-समासः—‘कaluṣī (स्त्री-भाव) कृतā’ = made impure

Speaker

Narrator (Purāṇic storyteller voice; likely Sūta/Lomaharṣaṇa in broader Skanda Purāṇa narration)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā tīrtha (contextual)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Ahalyā, stirred by Indra’s words, turns inward; her face shows wavering, and a subtle dark veil symbolizes kāma-kaluṣa entering the heart.

Characters & Entities

• Ahalyā
• Śakra (Indra)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The verse stresses that moral decline begins in the mind: when desire dominates inner contemplation, it ‘stains’ consciousness before any outward act.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific tīrtha is praised in this verse; it is part of the Revā Khaṇḍa’s narrative setting linked to the sanctity of the Revā/Narmadā region.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None directly; the implied dharma is inner restraint and mental purity.