Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 41

Devanagari script

ततो भस्मी जटी शूली चन्द्रार्धकृतशेखरः । उमार्द्धदेहो भगवान्भूत्वा विप्रमुवाच ह

Transliteration

tato bhasmī jaṭī śūlī candrārdhakṛtaśekharaḥ | umārddhadeho bhagavānbhūtvā vipramuvāca ha

Translation

Alors le Seigneur Bienheureux—couvert de cendre, aux cheveux emmêlés, portant le trident, couronné du croissant de lune, et dont la moitié du corps était Umā—s’adressa au brāhmane.

Word by Word

• ततः: then
• ततः: Kriya-visheshaṇa (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb) — अनन्तरार्थे

• भस्मी: ash-smeared
• भस्मी: Karta (Apposition)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: भस्मिन्/भस्मी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन; विशेषणरूपेण—भस्मधारी (one smeared with ash)

• जटी: matted-haired
• जटी: Karta (Apposition)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: जटिन्/जटी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन; विशेषणम्—जटाधरः

• शूली: trident-bearer
• शूली: Karta (Apposition)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शूलिन्/शूली (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन; विशेषणम्—शूलधारी

• चन्द्रार्धकृतशेखरः: whose crest is made of the half-moon
• चन्द्रार्धकृतशेखरः: Karta (Apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: चन्द्र + अर्ध + कृत + शेखर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन; बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः—‘चन्द्रस्य अर्धः कृतः शेखरः यस्य’ (idiomatic epithet)

• उमार्द्धदेहः: he whose body is half Umā (Ardhanārīśvara)
• उमार्द्धदेहः: Karta (Apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: उमा + अर्ध + देह (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन; बहुव्रीहिः—‘उमायाः अर्धः देहः यस्य’

• भगवान्: the Blessed Lord
• भगवान्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भगवत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन

• भूत्वा: having become
• भूत्वा: Kriya (Action - prior)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु) → भूत्वा (क्त्वान्त)
• Form: अव्ययकृदन्त (क्त्वा/gerund), पूर्वकाल (having become)

• विप्रम्: the brāhmaṇa
• विप्रम्: Karma (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विप्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन

• उवाच: said
• उवाच: Kriya (Action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच् (धातु) → उवाच
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• ह: indeed, surely
• ह: Nipata (Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ह (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात-अव्यय (emphatic particle)

Speaker

Narrator (contextual); Śiva speaks next

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā tirtha-zone (vision of Umā-Maheśvara)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Śiva manifests in full Śaiva splendor—ash-smeared, matted locks, trident, crescent crown—while sharing half his body with Umā, then addresses the brāhmaṇa.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva
• Umā (Pārvatī)
• Vipra (brāhmaṇa)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The Lord’s compassionate approach is shown through form and presence—divine iconography becomes a vehicle for grace and instruction.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Revā Khaṇḍa setting frames the episode; this verse emphasizes Śiva’s manifestation rather than naming a tīrtha.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None directly; the verse is descriptive (dhyāna/visualization-friendly iconographic detail).