Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 41

Devanagari script

समुद्रोपरि सम्प्राप्तः शुकः श्येनेन वीक्षितः । सामिषं तं शुकं ज्ञात्वा श्येनस्तमभ्यधावत

Transliteration

samudropari samprāptaḥ śukaḥ śyenena vīkṣitaḥ | sāmiṣaṃ taṃ śukaṃ jñātvā śyenastamabhyadhāvata

Translation

Lorsque le perroquet parvint au-dessus de l’océan, un faucon l’aperçut. Le sachant porteur de chair, le faucon fondit sur lui.

Word by Word

• samudra-upari: upon/over the ocean
• samudra-upari: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: samudra (प्रातिपदिक) + upari (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययीभाव-समास; अव्यय (locative sense)

• samprāptaḥ: having reached
• samprāptaḥ: Kriya (Participial predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-pra-āp (धातु)
• Form: क्त (past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; 'having reached/arrived'

• śukaḥ: the parrot
• śukaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śuka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन

• śyenena: by a hawk
• śyenena: Karana (Agent-instrument in passive/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śyena (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), एकवचन

• vīkṣitaḥ: was seen
• vīkṣitaḥ: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi-īkṣ (धातु)
• Form: क्त (past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; 'was seen'

• sāmiṣam: with meat (as prey)
• sāmiṣam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sa-āmiṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन; विशेषणं शुकम्; कर्मधारय (āmiṣaḥ saha = sāmiṣaḥ)

• tam: that
• tam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन

• śukam: parrot
• śukam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śuka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन

• jñātvā: having known
• jñātvā: Kriya-visheṣaṇa (Adverbial modifier/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: jñā (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund), अव्ययभाव; धातु: ज्ञा (to know)

• śyenaḥ: the hawk
• śyenaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śyena (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन

• tam: him/that one
• tam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन

• abhyadhāvata: ran towards, swooped at
• abhyadhāvata: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: abhi-dhāv (धातु)
• Form: लङ् (Imperfect), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; धातु: अभि+धाव् (to run towards)

Speaker

Narrator (contextual)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Above the rolling ocean, a parrot flies with a small packet; a hawk spots it and dives in a sharp arc, talons forward, creating a tense chase over waves.

Characters & Entities

• śuka (parrot)
• śyena (hawk)
• samudra (ocean)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Even righteous missions face sudden obstacles; Purāṇic stories highlight how fate can redirect outcomes.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No tīrtha is named; the verse uses the ocean-crossing as a narrative transition.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None.