Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 49

Devanagari script

पतन्ति पर्वताग्राणि शोषं यान्ति च सागराः । देवस्य पतिते लिङ्गे देवा विमनसोऽभवन्

Transliteration

patanti parvatāgrāṇi śoṣaṃ yānti ca sāgarāḥ | devasya patite liṅge devā vimanaso'bhavan

Translation

Les sommets des montagnes s’effondraient, et même les océans semblaient se dessécher. Lorsque le Liṅga du Seigneur fut tombé, les dieux devinrent abattus et tourmentés.

Word by Word

• पतन्ति: fall
• पतन्ति: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √pat (पत्)
• Form: लट् (Present); प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन; परस्मैपद

• पर्वत-अग्राणि: mountain-peaks
• पर्वत-अग्राणि: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: parvata (प्रातिपदिक) + agra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), बहुवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (पर्वतानाम् अग्राणि)

• शोषम्: drying up
• शोषम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śoṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन

• यान्ति: go/come to
• यान्ति: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √yā (या)
• Form: लट् (Present); प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन; परस्मैपद

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Conjunction/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयार्थक

• सागराः: oceans
• सागराः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sāgara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), बहुवचन

• देवस्य: of the god
• देवस्य: Shashthi-Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; षष्ठी, एकवचन

• पतिते: when (it was) fallen
• पतिते: Adhikarana (Occasion/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: patita (कृदन्त; √pat/पत्)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; सप्तमी, एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त; लिङ्गे इति विशेषणम्

• लिङ्गे: in/when the liṅga
• लिङ्गे: Adhikarana (Occasion/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: liṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; सप्तमी, एकवचन

• देवाः: the gods
• देवाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• विमनसः: despondent
• विमनसः: Karta (Subject-Qualifier/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vimanas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषणम् (देवाः)

• अभवन्: became
• अभवन्: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √bhū (भू)
• Form: लङ् (Imperfect/past); प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन; परस्मैपद

Speaker

Narrator (contextual Purāṇic narrator; likely Sūta/Lomaharṣaṇa addressing sages)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Liṅga-pāta-sthāna (implied)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: null

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Mountain crests crumble into dust; seas recede as if drying; devas stand with lowered faces and slackened garlands, overwhelmed by the fallen liṅga’s consequence.

Characters & Entities

• Devas
• Liṅga
• Śiva (implied)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The verse teaches that divine symbols (like the Liṅga) uphold order; their fall signifies a rupture in harmony that even the gods fear.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Revā (Narmadā) corridor is implied as the sacred Śaiva setting where the Liṅga’s significance is narrated.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly; the verse prepares for subsequent guidance by showing the devas’ urgency.