Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 84

Devanagari script

नरमांसवसामत्तं विद्युन्मालिनमाहवे । चूर्णितो मुष्टिपातेन सोऽपतद्वसुधातले

Transliteration

naramāṃsavasāmattaṃ vidyunmālinamāhave | cūrṇito muṣṭipātena so'patadvasudhātale

Translation

Dans la bataille, Vidyunmālin—ivre de chair et de graisse humaines—fut réduit en miettes par un seul coup de poing et tomba sur la surface de la terre.

Word by Word

• नरमांसवसामत्तम्: intoxicated with human flesh and fat
• नरमांसवसामत्तम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नर (प्रातिपदिक) + मांस (प्रातिपदिक) + वसा (प्रातिपदिक) + मत्त (कृदन्त; √मद् धातु)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; कृदन्त-भूतकृदन्त (क्त), विशेषणरूपेण

• विद्युन्मालिनम्: the Vidyunmālin (a named being)
• विद्युन्मालिनम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विद्युत् (प्रातिपदिक) + मालिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन

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

• चूर्णितः: was crushed/pulverized
• चूर्णितः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: चूर्णित (कृदन्त; √चूर्ण्/√चूर्णय् धातु)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; कृदन्त-भूतकृदन्त (क्त), विशेषण/विधेय

• मुष्टिपातेन: by a blow of the fist
• मुष्टिपातेन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मुष्टि (प्रातिपदिक) + पात (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), एकवचन

• सः: he
• सः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• अपतत्: fell
• अपतत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √पत् (धातु)
• Form: लङ् (अनद्यतनभूत), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• वसुधातले: on the surface of the earth
• वसुधातले: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वसुधा (प्रातिपदिक) + तल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7), एकवचन

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly framed as Skanda speaking to Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A ferocious battlefield moment: the cannibalistic Vidyunmālin, garlanded with lightning-like ornaments, is shattered by a single fist-blow; fragments and dust fall as he crashes to earth.

Characters & Entities

• Vidyunmālin

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Unrestrained adharma and cruelty culminate in swift downfall; divine-ordained justice prevails even amid worldly conflict.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The broader frame is Kāśī (Vārāṇasī) in the Kāśīkhaṇḍa, though this particular verse focuses on a battle episode rather than naming a specific tīrtha.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None in this verse; it is purely narrative.