Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 56

Devanagari script

एवमुक्तो महादेवस्तेन भूतेन भारत । योगीन्द्रं दर्शयामास नखमांसान्तरे तदा

Transliteration

evamukto mahādevastena bhūtena bhārata | yogīndraṃ darśayāmāsa nakhamāṃsāntare tadā

Translation

Ainsi interpellé par cet esprit, ô Bhārata, Mahādeva révéla alors le seigneur des yogins, qu’on voyait logé entre l’ongle et la chair.

Word by Word

• एवम्: thus
• एवम्: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एवम् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकारवाचक (adverb: thus/in this manner)

• उक्तः: having been addressed
• उक्तः: Karta-samānādhikaraṇa (Subject qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √वच् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; भूतकृदन्त (past passive participle)

• महादेवः: Mahādeva
• महादेवः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महादेव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (महान् देवः)

• तेन: by him
• तेन: Karana (Agent in passive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक, तृतीया (Instrumental), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• भूतेन: by the spirit/being
• भूतेन: Karana (Instrument/Agent)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भूत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन

• भारत: O Bhārata
• भारत: Sambodhana (Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भारत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, एकवचन

• योगीन्द्रम्: the lord of yogis
• योगीन्द्रम्: Karma (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: योगिन् (प्रातिपदिक) + इन्द्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः: योगिनाम् इन्द्रः (lord of yogis)

• दर्शयामास: showed
• दर्शयामास: Kriya (Action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √दृश् (धातु) णिच् (causative)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद; णिजन्त (causative) = caused to be seen/showed

• नखमांसान्तरे: in the space between nail and flesh
• नखमांसान्तरे: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नख + मांस + अन्तर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः

• तदा: then
• तदा: Adhikarana (Temporal/कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तदा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक (temporal adverb: then)

Speaker

Narrator (implied Vaiśampāyana) to Yudhiṣṭhira

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā-kṣetra – Śiva-ālaya

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Bhārata (as addressed)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Mahādeva, calm and sovereign, gestures to reveal the yogin lodged between nail and flesh; the concealed figure becomes visible to all as the sanctum light intensifies.

Characters & Entities

• Mahādeva (Śiva)
• bhūta (spirit-being)
• Yogīndra (sage/yogin)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Śiva’s knowledge penetrates what is hidden; divine grace can disclose and safeguard even those in the most subtle, concealed states.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Revā/Narmadā sacred landscape frames the episode in the Revā Khaṇḍa, though the verse highlights a miracle rather than a named tīrtha.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it is a narrative depiction of revelation and protection.