Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 84

Devanagari script

आस्वाद्यैवं समादाय तत्कपालं समाकुलः । पीत्वा वसां महाकायो बभूवातिभयंकरः

Transliteration

āsvādyaivaṃ samādāya tatkapālaṃ samākulaḥ | pītvā vasāṃ mahākāyo babhūvātibhayaṃkaraḥ

Translation

Ainsi, après y avoir goûté et, dans l’agitation, s’être saisi de ce crâne, il en but la graisse ; et son corps devint gigantesque, terrifiant au-delà de toute mesure.

Word by Word

• आस्वाद्य: having tasted
• आस्वाद्य: Kriya (पूर्वक्रिया/Adverbial action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ā√svad (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (Absolutive/Gerund), अव्ययभावः; धातु: √स्वद् (स्वादने) उपसर्ग: आ-

• एवम्: thus
• एवम्: Kriya-visheṣaṇa (Adverbial modifier)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: evam (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (Adverb)

• समादाय: having taken up
• समादाय: Kriya (पूर्वक्रिया/Adverbial action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-ā-√dā (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (Absolutive/Gerund), अव्ययभावः; धातु: √दा (आदाने) उपसर्ग: सम्+आ-

• तत्कपालम्: that skull
• तत्कपालम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tat (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + kapāla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति (Accusative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (तस्य कपालेम्)

• समाकुलः: agitated, confused
• समाकुलः: Karta (Subject qualifier/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: samākula (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति (Nominative), एकवचन; विशेषण

• पीत्वा: having drunk
• पीत्वा: Kriya (पूर्वक्रिया/Adverbial action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √pā (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (Absolutive/Gerund), अव्ययभावः; धातु: √पा (पाने)

• वसाम्: fat, grease
• वसाम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vasā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति (Accusative), एकवचन

• महाकायः: huge-bodied
• महाकायः: Karta (Subject qualifier/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + kāya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति (Nominative), एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (महान् कायः यस्य/महाकायः)

• बभूव: became
• बभूव: Kriya (Main verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √bhū (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• अतिभयंकरः: extremely terrifying
• अतिभयंकरः: Karta (Subject complement/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ati (अव्यय/उपसर्गवत्) + bhayaṃkara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति (Nominative), एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (अति-भयंकरः)

Speaker

Narrator (contextual; likely Sūta/Lomaharṣaṇa in Setukhaṇḍa narration)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Setu-kṣetra (Setubandha/Rāmeśvara sphere)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Śaunaka and the Naimiṣāraṇya sages (typical frame)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A frantic figure seizes a skull-cup, tastes and drinks its fat; his body swells into a gigantic, terrifying form, eyes blazing, veins and muscles distended, the atmosphere turning ominous.

Characters & Entities

• Vetāla (implied)
• Kapāla (skull)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Indulgence in impure, fear-driven acts leads to degradation and terrifying transformation—contrary to dharma.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Setu-kṣetra (Rāmeśvaram/Setu region) is the larger sacred setting of the Setukhaṇḍa narration.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly in this verse; it is narrative description rather than a vrata/dāna instruction.