Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 44

Devanagari script

अवमानेन तस्यापि यथा देवी जहौ तनुम् । यथा यज्ञः स च ध्वस्तो भवेन विदितं हि ते

Transliteration

avamānena tasyāpi yathā devī jahau tanum | yathā yajñaḥ sa ca dhvasto bhavena viditaṃ hi te

Translation

À cause de son outrage, la Déesse abandonna son corps ; et ce sacrifice aussi fut détruit par Bhava (Śiva), comme tu le sais bien.

Word by Word

• avamānena: by insult
• avamānena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: avamāna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग (भाववाचक), तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन — ‘अवमानेन’ (by insult)

• tasya: of him
• tasya: Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), एकवचन — ‘तस्य’ (of him/of that)

• api: also/even
• api: Sambandha (Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (समुच्चय/अपि-निपात) — ‘also/even’

• yathā: as
• yathā: Sambandha (Correlative)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (उपमान/यथार्थ-सम्बन्धबोधक) — ‘as/how’

• devī: the goddess
• devī: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: devī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — ‘देवी’

• jahau: abandoned
• jahau: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √hā (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (परोक्शभूत/Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद — ‘जहौ’ (she abandoned)

• tanum: her body
• tanum: Karman (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tanu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन — ‘तनुम्’ (body)

• yathā: as
• yathā: Sambandha (Correlative)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (यथा-सम्बन्ध) — ‘as’

• yajñaḥ: the sacrifice
• yajñaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yajña (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — ‘यज्ञः’

• saḥ: that
• saḥ: Karta (Apposition/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — ‘सः’ (that/he)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (समुच्चय)

• dhvastaḥ: destroyed
• dhvastaḥ: Karta (Predicate adjective)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √dhvaṃs (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त (क्त/भूतकर्मणि), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — ‘ध्वस्तः’ (destroyed)

• bhavena: by Bhava (Śiva)
• bhavena: Karana (Agent-instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन — ‘भवेन’ (by Bhava=Śiva)

• viditam: known
• viditam: Karta (Predicate/प्रत्ययार्थ)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √vid (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त (क्त), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन — ‘विदितम्’ (known)

• hi: indeed
• hi: Sambandha (Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (हेतु/निश्चयार्थ-निपात) — ‘indeed/for’

• te: to you
• te: Sampradana (Dative/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tvad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: मध्यमपुरुष-सर्वनाम, चतुर्थी/षष्ठी (4th/6th), एकवचन — ‘ते’ (to you/of you); अत्र ‘विदितं हि ते’ = ‘known to you’ (चतुर्थी)

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) narrating to the sages (deduced from Māheśvarakhaṇḍa context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Dakṣa-yajña-smṛti (archetypal)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: The Devī, overwhelmed by insult, withdraws life-force and abandons the body; simultaneously the yajña pavilion shatters—fire altars overturned, smoke and ash, Śiva/Bhava’s destructive presence implied or manifest.

Characters & Entities

• Devī (Satī)
• Bhava (Śiva)
• Dakṣa-yajña (implied)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Ritual without humility and respect for Śiva becomes hollow; insult to the divine brings the collapse of merit and order.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No tīrtha is specified; the verse recalls the famed Dakṣa-yajña episode.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

The verse references a yajña (sacrifice) but functions as a cautionary narrative rather than a procedural injunction.