Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 86

Devanagari script

दंतोत्थाने महद्दुःखं मौलेन व्याधिना तथा । बालरोगैश्च विविधैः पीडा बालग्रहैरपि

Transliteration

daṃtotthāne mahadduḥkhaṃ maulena vyādhinā tathā | bālarogaiśca vividhaiḥ pīḍā bālagrahairapi

Translation

Il y a grande douleur lorsque les dents percent, et de même des maladies de la tête ; il y a affliction par diverses maladies de l’enfance, et même tourment par les bālagrahas, esprits qui saisissent les enfants.

Word by Word

• danta-utthāne: at the eruption of teeth
• danta-utthāne: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: danta (प्रातिपदिक) + utthāna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन; दन्तानाम् उत्थाने इति षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (locative: “at the eruption of teeth”)

• mahat-duḥkham: great pain/suffering
• mahat-duḥkham: Karma/Predicative (Object or predicate/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahat (प्रातिपदिक) + duḥkha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; महत्-दुःखम् इति कर्मधारयः

• maulena: by a root-related (ailment)
• maulena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: maula (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन; ‘मूल’सम्बन्धी (instrumental: “by/with root-origin”)

• vyādhinā: by disease
• vyādhinā: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vyādhi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन

• tathā: likewise/also
• tathā: Sambandha/Discourse particle (सम्बन्ध/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय/उपमानार्थक (particle: “also/likewise”)

• bāla-rogaiḥ: by children’s diseases
• bāla-rogaiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bāla (प्रातिपदिक) + roga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), बहुवचन; बालानां रोगैः इति षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha/Connector (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयबोधक (conjunction)

• vividhaiḥ: various
• vividhaiḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vividha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), बहुवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifying bālarogaiḥ)

• pīḍā: affliction/pain
• pīḍā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pīḍā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन

• bāla-grahaiḥ: by child-seizing spirits (grahas)
• bāla-grahaiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bāla (प्रातिपदिक) + graha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), बहुवचन; बालानां ग्रहैः इति षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः

• api: also/even
• api: Sambandha/Emphasis particle (सम्बन्ध/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अपि-कार (particle: “also/even”)

Speaker

Lomaharṣaṇa (Sūta) (deduced from Māheśvarakhaṇḍa narrative convention)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A tender domestic scene: an infant teething and crying, caregivers anxious; subtle, shadowy ‘bālagraha’ forms at the periphery to indicate unseen affliction; a protective Śaiva/Kaumāra presence implied (tripuṇḍra/vel iconography as apotropaic).

Characters & Entities

• Bālagraha

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Embodiment begins with unavoidable pain and vulnerability; recognizing this supports detachment and the search for lasting refuge in dharma.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No tīrtha is named; the verse is part of a general teaching on duḥkha across life stages.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None is specified; the verse describes conditions (disease and bālagraha affliction) rather than prescribing rites.