Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 105

Devanagari script

श्रीकृष्ण उवाच । कुम्भकर्ण इति ख्यातः पूर्वमासीन्निशाचरः । रामबाणहतस्याभूच्छिरश्छिन्नं सुदुर्मतेः

Transliteration

śrīkṛṣṇa uvāca | kumbhakarṇa iti khyātaḥ pūrvamāsīnniśācaraḥ | rāmabāṇahatasyābhūcchiraśchinnaṃ sudurmateḥ

Translation

Śrī Kṛṣṇa dit : «Autrefois vivait un démon rôdeur de la nuit, connu sous le nom de Kumbhakarṇa. Lorsque ce scélérat fut abattu par les flèches de Rāma, sa tête fut tranchée.»

Word by Word

• śrī-kṛṣṇaḥ: Lord Krishna
• śrī-kṛṣṇaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śrī + kṛṣṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारयः (honorific epithet)

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद (said)

• kumbhakarṇaḥ: Kumbhakarna
• kumbhakarṇaḥ: Karta (Subject of implied 'was'/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kumbha + karṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; षष्ठी/उपपद-तत्पुरुषः (proper name)

• iti: thus, as
• iti: Sambandha (Quotative/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; इति-उद्धरण/नामनिर्देश (quotative particle)

• khyātaḥ: was known (as)
• khyātaḥ: Karta (Subject-complement/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √khyā (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्मणि (known/called)

• pūrvam: formerly
• pūrvam: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: pūrva (प्रातिपदिक/अव्ययीभावे)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (temporal adverb: 'formerly')

• āsīt: was
• āsīt: Kriya (Copula/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √as (धातु)
• Form: लङ् (Imperfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद (was)

• niśācaraḥ: a night-roamer (demon)
• niśācaraḥ: Karta (Predicate nominal/कर्ता-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: niśā + cara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (one who moves at night)

• rāma-bāṇa-hatasya: of (him) slain by Rama's arrow
• rāma-bāṇa-hatasya: Sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: rāma + bāṇa + hata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th case), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (rāmasya bāṇena hataḥ)

• abhūt: was, became
• abhūt: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √bhū (धातु)
• Form: लङ् (Imperfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद (became/was)

• śiraḥ: head
• śiraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śiras (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन (neuter nom sg)

• chinnam: cut off
• chinnam: Karta (Subject-complement/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √chid (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्मणि (cut off)

• su-durmateḥ: of the very wicked-minded one
• su-durmateḥ: Sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: su + durmati (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th case), एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारयः (very evil-minded)

Speaker

Śrī Kṛṣṇa

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Vṛkodara (Bhīma)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Kṛṣṇa narrates: the rākṣasa Kumbhakarṇa, slain by Rāma’s arrows; the severed head implied, with epic battlefield aura in the background.

Characters & Entities

• Kṛṣṇa
• Kumbhakarṇa
• Rāma

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Adharma, however mighty, meets its end; Purāṇas link moral history with sacred landscape.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Not explicitly named in this verse; it introduces the mythic origin behind a marvel in the landscape.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None.