Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 19

Devanagari script

शशिसूर्यारुणा यस्या ललाटे वृषभध्वजः । सरस्वती च हुंकारे सर्वे नागाश्च कंबले

Transliteration

śaśisūryāruṇā yasyā lalāṭe vṛṣabhadhvajaḥ | sarasvatī ca huṃkāre sarve nāgāśca kaṃbale

Translation

Celle dont le front rayonne de l’éclat de la lune et du soleil, et sur qui se marque le Seigneur à l’étendard du Taureau (Śiva) ; dans le mugissement même de qui demeure Sarasvatī, et dans la couverture de qui se rassemblent tous les Nāgas : telle est la Vache merveilleuse, Surabhī.

Word by Word

• śaśisūryāruṇāḥ: the moon, the sun, and Aruṇa (reddish dawn)
• śaśisūryāruṇāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śaśi + sūrya + aruṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; द्वन्द्वसमासः (शशि-सूर्य-अरुण)

• yasyāḥ: of whom/whose
• yasyāḥ: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन; सम्बन्धे (of whom)

• lalāṭe: on the forehead
• lalāṭe: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: lalāṭa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; अधिकरण (location)

• vṛṣabhadhvajaḥ: the one with the bull as his banner (Śiva)
• vṛṣabhadhvajaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vṛṣabha + dhvaja (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (वृषभस्य ध्वजः)

• sarasvatī: Sarasvatī
• sarasvatī: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarasvatī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• ca: and
• ca: Samuccaya (Conjunctive/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• huṃkāre: in the roar/utterance of “huṃ”
• huṃkāre: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: huṃkāra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; अधिकरण

• sarve: all
• sarve: Visheshana (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifying nāgāḥ)

• nāgāḥ: serpents
• nāgāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nāga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

• ca: and
• ca: Samuccaya (Conjunctive/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• kaṃbale: in the blanket/covering
• kaṃbale: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kaṃbala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; अधिकरण

Speaker

Narrator (contextual; likely Vyāsa continuing the account within the dialogue frame)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Surabhī (tīrthamayī dhenu)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: King (Rājan) addressed within the passage

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A radiant Surabhī-cow stands as a cosmic being: moon-and-sun glow on her forehead; a subtle mark of Vṛṣabhadhvaja (Śiva) upon her; Sarasvatī as a luminous presence in her bellow; nāgas coiled like a protective blanket over her body.

Characters & Entities

• Surabhī (Dhenu)
• Śiva (Vṛṣabhadhvaja)
• Sarasvatī
• Nāgas

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The divine is immanent in sacred beings: even sound, symbols, and coverings become carriers of deities and cosmic orders.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

This verse is primarily a mahimā (praise) of Surabhī within Dharmāraṇya-khaṇḍa rather than naming a specific tīrtha in the line itself.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct ritual (snāna, dāna, japa) is prescribed in this verse; it functions as descriptive eulogy.