Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 29

Devanagari script

महाडमरुघोषेण कम्पयन् वै वसुंधराम् । प्रभातसमये प्राप्तो महादारुवनं प्रति

Transliteration

mahāḍamarughoṣeṇa kampayan vai vasuṃdharām | prabhātasamaye prāpto mahādāruvanaṃ prati

Translation

Par le fracas tonnant de son grand ḍamaru, il fit trembler la terre ; et à l’heure de l’aurore il arriva, se dirigeant vers la vaste forêt de Dāruvana.

Word by Word

• mahā-ḍamaru-ghoṣeṇa: by the great sound of the ḍamaru drum
• mahā-ḍamaru-ghoṣeṇa: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + ḍamaru (प्रातिपदिक) + ghoṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, तृतीया (करण), एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः—‘ḍamaros ghoṣaḥ’

• kampayan: shaking
• kampayan: Karta (Agent/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kamp (धातु)
• Form: शतृ-प्रत्ययान्त वर्तमानकाले कृदन्तः; प्रथमा, एकवचन, पुल्लिङ्ग

• vai: indeed
• vai: Sambandha/Emphasis (निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vai (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (emphatic particle)

• vasuṃdharām: the earth
• vasuṃdharām: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vasuṃdharā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• prabhāta-samaye: at dawn-time
• prabhāta-samaye: Adhikarana (Time-locus/कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prabhāta (प्रातिपदिक) + samaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, सप्तमी (अधिकरण), एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः—‘प्रभातस्य समयः’

• prāptaḥ: arrived
• prāptaḥ: Karta (Agent/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra-√āp (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकाले कृदन्तः (past passive participle used actively); पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• mahā-dāru-vanam: the great Dāru forest
• mahā-dāru-vanam: Karma (Goal/गन्तव्य-कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + dāru (प्रातिपदिक) + vana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः—‘महद् दारुवनम्’ (नामविशेषः)

• prati: towards
• prati: Gati/Direction (गति/दिशा)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: prati (अव्यय)
• Form: उपसर्ग/अव्यय (directional preposition)

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) (deduced)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Mahā-Dāruvana

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: At first light, Śiva advances toward the vast forest; the great ḍamaru booms, its sound-waves depicted as ripples through earth and air, as trees and dust seem to vibrate.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva (Mahādeva)
• Ḍamaru
• Daruvana

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Divine presence is transformative: even nature responds when the Lord moves, suggesting the cosmos is sensitive to dharma and divinity.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse names Daruvana as the narrative sacred locale; within Revā Khaṇḍa it functions as part of the broader holy landscape associated with the Revā (Narmadā).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly; the verse sets the scene with time (dawn) and divine signs (ḍamaru).