Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 73

Devanagari script

ततस्तार्क्ष्यरथः क्रुद्धस्त्वेकैकं रणमूर्धनि । सहस्रेणसहस्रेण बाणानां हृद्यताडयत्

Transliteration

tatastārkṣyarathaḥ kruddhastvekaikaṃ raṇamūrdhani | sahasreṇasahasreṇa bāṇānāṃ hṛdyatāḍayat

Translation

Alors, le guerrier furieux monté sur le char de Tārkṣya (Garuḍa pour monture) frappa chacun à l’avant du champ de bataille, faisant pleuvoir des milliers et des milliers de flèches dans leurs poitrines.

Word by Word

• ततः: then, thereafter
• ततः: Sambandha (Discourse/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय; तद्-तसिल्)
• Form: तसिल्-प्रत्ययान्त-अव्यय (ablatival adverb)

• तार्क्ष्यरथः: the one whose chariot is (with) Tārkṣya/Garuḍa
• तार्क्ष्यरथः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तार्क्ष्य (प्रातिपदिक) + रथ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः—तार्क्ष्यस्य रथः (गरुड-रथः/गरुडध्वजः)

• क्रुद्धः: angry
• क्रुद्धः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: क्रुध् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (past participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषणम्

• तु: but, indeed
• तु: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: विरोध/विशेषार्थक-निपात (adversative/emphatic particle)

• एकैकम्: each one, one by one
• एकैकम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: एक (प्रातिपदिक) + एक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; इतरेतर-द्वन्द्वः ‘one by one/each single’—क्रियाविशेषणवत्

• रणमूर्धनि: on the forefront of the battle
• रणमूर्धनि: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रण (प्रातिपदिक) + मूर्धन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः—रणस्य मूर्धनि (battlefield’s head/top)

• सहस्रेण: with a thousand
• सहस्रेण: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सहस्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन

• सहस्रेण: with a thousand (upon thousand)
• सहस्रेण: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सहस्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन; पुनरुक्ति-प्रयोगः (intensification)

• बाणानाम्: of arrows
• बाणानाम्: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: बाण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, बहुवचन

• हृदि: in the heart/chest
• हृदि: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हृद् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन

• अताडयत्: struck, beat
• अताडयत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: तड् (धातु) (णिजन्त; ताडय-)
• Form: लङ् (Imperfect/Past), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद; causative stem ‘to strike’

Speaker

Narrator (Kāśīkhaṇḍa narration traditionally Skanda → Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī-kṣetra (contextual frame)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Ṛṣis/pilgrims (frame audience)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Viṣṇu, enraged, rides Garuḍa like a chariot; from the battlefield’s crest he releases an impossible torrent—thousands upon thousands of arrows—each striking individual gaṇas at the chest, the air dense with shafts.

Characters & Entities

• Tārkṣya (Garuḍa)
• Viṣṇu

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Cosmic conflicts in Purāṇas portray the irresistible force of divine agency; power is vast, yet ultimately subordinated to dharma’s resolution.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The chapter belongs to Kāśī’s sacred corpus (Kāśīkhaṇḍa), but this verse is a martial narrative detail rather than a tīrtha praise.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None.