Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 7

Devanagari script

धर्मक्षेत्रे कुरुक्षेत्रे तत्र युध्यन्ति ते क्षणम् । भीमार्जुननिमित्तेन शिष्यौ कृत्वा परस्परम्

Transliteration

dharmakṣetre kurukṣetre tatra yudhyanti te kṣaṇam | bhīmārjunanimittena śiṣyau kṛtvā parasparam

Translation

Sur le champ du dharma, Kurukṣetra, ils combattent là un moment—comme s’ils se faisaient l’un l’autre « disciples », à l’occasion de Bhīma et d’Arjuna.

Word by Word

• धर्मक्षेत्रे: in the holy field
• धर्मक्षेत्रे: Adhikaraṇa (Locative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धर्म + क्षेत्र (प्रातिपदिके)
• Form: कर्मधारयसमास (धर्मः एव क्षेत्रम्), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7), एकवचन

• कुरुक्षेत्रे: in Kurukṣetra
• कुरुक्षेत्रे: Adhikaraṇa (Locative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कुरु + क्षेत्र (प्रातिपदिके)
• Form: तत्पुरुषसमास (कुरूणां क्षेत्रम्), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7), एकवचन; 'धर्मक्षेत्रे' इत्यस्य समानाधिकरणम्

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Locative adverb)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (देशवाचक/adverb)

• युध्यन्ति: they fight
• युध्यन्ति: Kriyā (Predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: युध् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (वर्तमानकाल/present), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन

• ते: they
• ते: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), बहुवचन

• क्षणम्: for a moment
• क्षणम्: Kāla-adhikaraṇa (Temporal extent)
• Type: Noun
• Root: क्षण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; कालावधि-अर्थे (accusative of duration)

• भीमार्जुननिमित्तेन: because of Bhīma and Arjuna
• भीमार्जुननिमित्तेन: Karaṇa/Hetu (Instrument/Cause)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भीम + अर्जुन + निमित्त (प्रातिपदिके)
• Form: तत्पुरुषसमास (भीम-अर्जुनयोः निमित्तम्), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), एकवचन

• शिष्यौ: (as) disciples
• शिष्यौ: Karma (Object of absolutive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शिष्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), द्विवचन; 'कृत्वा' इत्यस्य कर्म

• कृत्वा: having made
• कृत्वा: Pūrvakāla-kriyā (Prior action)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त अव्ययभाव (absolutive/gerund)

• परस्परम्: mutually, each other
• परस्परम्: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Reciprocal adverb)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: परस्पर (प्रातिपदिक/अव्ययप्राय)
• Form: अव्यय (परस्परम् = mutual/reciprocally; क्रियाविशेषण)

Speaker

Mārkaṇḍeya

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kurukṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Pārtha (Arjuna)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Kurukṣetra plain with two armies paused; Bhīma and Arjuna as catalytic figures; a subtle sense that the battlefield is also a classroom of dharma.

Characters & Entities

• Kurukṣetra
• Bhīma
• Arjuna
• Dharma-kṣetra

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Kurukṣetra is remembered as ‘dharmakṣetra’—a place where conflict becomes instruction, compelling participants toward the discipline of dharma.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kurukṣetra is explicitly named as dharmakṣetra, while the surrounding chapter continues the tīrtha-focused narrative of Yojaneśvara.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit ritual is stated; the verse emphasizes the dharmic significance of the battlefield setting.