Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 21

Devanagari script

तत इन्द्रादयो देवा राक्षसाञ्जघ्नुराहवे । राक्षसाश्च सुराञ्जघ्नुः समरे विजिगीषवः

Transliteration

tata indrādayo devā rākṣasāñjaghnurāhave | rākṣasāśca surāñjaghnuḥ samare vijigīṣavaḥ

Translation

Alors Indra et les autres devas abattirent les Rākṣasas dans la bataille ; et les Rākṣasas aussi, avides de victoire, tuèrent les dieux au cœur du combat.

Word by Word

• ततः: then, thereafter
• ततः: Adhikarana (Context/काल-देश)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (क्रियाविशेषण) = indeclinable adverb; अर्थे ‘तस्मात्/अनन्तरम्’ (thereupon/then)

• इन्द्रादयः: Indra and the other (gods)
• इन्द्रादयः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: indra + ādi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; ‘इन्द्रः आदिः येषाम्’ इति षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (those beginning with Indra)

• देवाः: the gods
• देवाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन

• राक्षसान्: the demons (rākṣasas)
• राक्षसान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rākṣasa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), बहुवचन

• जघ्नुः: slew, killed
• जघ्नुः: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: han (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (परस्मैपद), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन; परोक्षभूत (perfect) = ‘they slew’

• आहवे: in battle
• आहवे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: āhava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन; अधिकरण (locative)

• राक्षसाः: the demons
• राक्षसाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rākṣasa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (समुच्चयबोधक-निपात) = conjunction ‘and’

• सुरान्: the gods
• सुरान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sura (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), बहुवचन

• जघ्नुः: slew
• जघ्नुः: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: han (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (परस्मैपद), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन; परोक्षभूत (perfect)

• समरे: in the battle
• समरे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: samara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन; अधिकरण

• विजिगीषवः: desiring to conquer
• विजिगीषवः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vi + jigīṣu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; इच्छार्थक-विशेषण = ‘विजेतुम् इच्छन्तः’ (desirous of victory)

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) narrating to the sages (deduced from Purāṇic narrative style; speaker not explicit in snippet)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Setu / Setubandha

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Ṛṣis/assembly of sages (typical Purāṇic audience)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A wide battlefield near the sea-shore of Setu: Indra and devas charging with vajra and banners; rākṣasas counterattacking; dust, conch-calls, and crashing waves behind the combat lines.

Characters & Entities

• Indra
• Devas
• Rākṣasas

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Even divine forces face struggle; victory is tied to resolve and righteous effort within dharma.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Setu region (Setukhaṇḍa), associated with the sacred geography of Setubandha/Rāmeśvaram in the Skanda Purana.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None in this verse; it is a battlefield narration within the Setu Mahatmya frame.