Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 19

Devanagari script

धारयामास विप्राणामृषभः स हृदा हरिम् । शूलाग्रे तप्यमानेन तपस्तेन कृतं तदा

Transliteration

dhārayāmāsa viprāṇāmṛṣabhaḥ sa hṛdā harim | śūlāgre tapyamānena tapastena kṛtaṃ tadā

Translation

Ce taureau parmi les brahmanes porta Hari dans son cœur ; et, tandis qu’il brûlait sur la pointe du trident, il accomplit alors cette austérité.

Word by Word

• धारयामास: held/bore
• धारयामास: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √dhṛ (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Periphrastic Perfect/परिप्रयोग-लिट्), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; ‘धारयामास’ = धारितवान्

• विप्राणाम्: of the brahmins
• विप्राणाम्: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vipra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), बहुवचन

• ऋषभः: the foremost/bull (best one)
• ऋषभः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ṛṣabha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन

• सः: he
• सः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन

• हृदा: in/with (his) heart
• हृदा: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hṛd (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), एकवचन

• हरिम्: Hari (Viṣṇu)
• हरिम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hari (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन

• शूलाग्रे: on the tip of the stake
• शूलाग्रे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śūla + agra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/अधिकरण), एकवचन; समासः—शूलस्य अग्रे (at the tip of the stake)

• तप्यमानेन: by (his) being tormented
• तप्यमानेन: Karana (Instrument/means/करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √tap (धातु)
• Form: शानच् (Present Passive Participle), पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), एकवचन; ‘तप्यमानेन’ = पीड्यमानेन/ताप्यमानेन (while being tormented)

• तपः: austerity
• तपः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tapas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता/भाव), एकवचन

• तेन: by him/thereby
• तेन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), एकवचन; ‘तेन’ = तेन (by him/thereby)

• कृतम्: was performed/done
• कृतम्: Kriyā (Result/state/क्रिया-फल)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kṛ (धातु)
• Form: क्त (Past Passive Participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; ‘कृतम्’ = सम्पन्नम्/आचरितम्

• तदा: then
• तदा: Kāla (Time/काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tadā (अव्यय)
• Form: कालबोधक अव्यय (then)

Speaker

Narrator (contextually: Śrī Markaṇḍeya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: The sage, scorched on the trident’s tip, is shown with a luminous heart-lotus containing a small icon of Hari (Viṣṇu) or a blue radiance; outwardly suffering, inwardly serene; flames/heat shimmer around the metal point.

Characters & Entities

• Hari
• Viprarṣi

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

True tapas is inwardly anchored—holding the Lord in the heart—even amid extreme bodily suffering.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Revā Khaṇḍa setting (Revā/Narmadā region) provides the sacred backdrop; this verse itself highlights the ascetic’s inner practice.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No formal rite is prescribed; the emphasis is on heart-centered remembrance (hṛdaya-dhāraṇā) and austerity (tapas).