Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 34

Devanagari script

साधकास्ते महाराज जपहोमपरायणाः । प्रेतासनास्तु ते सर्वे कालकूटोपरि स्थिताः

Transliteration

sādhakāste mahārāja japahomaparāyaṇāḥ | pretāsanāstu te sarve kālakūṭopari sthitāḥ

Translation

Ces sādhakas, ô grand roi, étaient voués au japa et aux offrandes au feu. Tous, assis sur des preta, se tenaient postés sur le Kālākūṭa.

Word by Word

• sādhakāḥ: practitioners, adepts
• sādhakāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sādhaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), बहुवचन

• te: they/those
• te: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), बहुवचन

• mahā-rāja: O great king
• mahā-rāja: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + rāja (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कर्मधारयसमास; पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8), एकवचन

• japa-homa-parāyaṇāḥ: devoted to japa and homa
• japa-homa-parāyaṇāḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: japa (प्रातिपदिक) + homa (प्रातिपदिक) + parāyaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुषसमास (उपपद/निर्देश: 'जप-होमयोः परायणाः'); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), बहुवचन; 'साधकाः' इत्यस्य विशेषणम्

• pretāsanāḥ: having seats of corpses/ghost-seats
• pretāsanāḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: preta (प्रातिपदिक) + āsana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुषसमास; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), बहुवचन; 'ते सर्वे' इत्यस्य विशेषणम्

• tu: but/indeed
• tu: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: विरोध/विशेषार्थक-अव्यय (particle)

• te: they
• te: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), बहुवचन

• sarve: all
• sarve: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), बहुवचन; 'ते' इत्यस्य विशेषणम्

• kāla-kūṭa-upari: upon Kālakūṭa
• kāla-kūṭa-upari: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kālakūṭa (प्रातिपदिक) + upari (अव्यय)
• Form: उपरि (अव्यय, स्थानवाचक); 'काळकूट' इत्यस्य उपरि = 'on/above Kālakūṭa'

• sthitāḥ: standing, situated
• sthitāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √sthā (धातु) → sthita (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), बहुवचन; 'ते सर्वे' इत्यस्य विशेषणम्

Speaker

Deductive: a Purāṇic narrator addressing a king

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kālākūṭa

Type: peak

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Mahārāja (addressed)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: On the dark peak of Kālākūṭa, a line of sādhakas sits in unwavering posture upon stylized preta-seats, facing a blazing homa-kuṇḍa; smoke rises into a night sky while mantra-energy is suggested by rhythmic halos around them.

Characters & Entities

• Sādhaka
• Japa
• Homa
• Preta
• Kālākūṭa

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Discipline in japa and homa is portrayed as potent, even when described through fierce or esoteric imagery, underscoring the gravity of ritual power.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kālākūṭa is named as a significant spot within the Dharmāraṇya setting.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Japa (mantra repetition) and homa (fire oblations) are highlighted as the practitioners’ primary disciplines.