Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 33

Devanagari script

अशनात्कालकूटस्य नीलकंठोऽभवत्तदा । देवानां कार्यसिद्ध्यर्थं मुंडमाला तथा कृता

Transliteration

aśanātkālakūṭasya nīlakaṃṭho'bhavattadā | devānāṃ kāryasiddhyarthaṃ muṃḍamālā tathā kṛtā

Translation

En avalant le poison Kālakūṭa, Il devint alors Nīlakaṇṭha, «à la gorge bleue». Et pour l’accomplissement de l’œuvre des dieux, fut pareillement façonnée la muṇḍamālā, la guirlande de crânes.

Word by Word

• aśanāt: from eating
• aśanāt: Hetu/Apādāna (Cause/Source)
• Type: Noun
• Root: aśana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th), एकवचन — ablative ‘from eating’

• kālakūṭasya: of the Kālakūṭa poison
• kālakūṭasya: Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kālakūṭa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), एकवचन — genitive ‘of Kālakūṭa (poison)’

• nīlakaṃṭhaḥ: the Blue-throated one
• nīlakaṃṭhaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nīla (प्रातिपदिक) + kaṃṭha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कर्मधारय-समास (नीलः कण्ठः यस्य), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — nominative singular

• abhavat: became
• abhavat: Kriyā (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √bhū (धातु)
• Form: लङ् (अनद्यतनभूत), परस्मैपद, प्रथमा-पुरुष, एकवचन — imperfect ‘became’

• tadā: then
• tadā: Kāla-adhikaraṇa (Temporal)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tadā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (कालवाचक) — ‘then’

• devānām: of the gods
• devānām: Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), बहुवचन — genitive plural

• kāryasiddhyartham: for the accomplishment of (their) task
• kāryasiddhyartham: Prayojana (Purpose)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kārya (प्रातिपदिक) + siddhi (प्रातिपदिक) + artha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (कार्य-सिद्धि-अर्थम्), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; प्रयोजनार्थे अव्ययीभाववत् प्रयोगः — ‘for the sake of accomplishing the task’

• muṃḍamālā: a garland of skulls/heads
• muṃḍamālā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: muṃḍa (प्रातिपदिक) + mālā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (मुण्डानां माला), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — nominative singular

• tathā: thus/also
• tathā: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Manner)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (प्रकारवाचक) — ‘thus/also’

• kṛtā: was made
• kṛtā: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa/Predicative adjective
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √kṛ (धातु) + kta (कृत् प्रत्यय)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (क्त-प्रत्ययान्त), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — ‘made/created’ (agreeing with muṃḍamālā)

Speaker

Lomaharṣaṇa Sūta (deduced: narrative voice)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kedāra/Kedāranātha

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Implied pilgrim/ṛṣi audience

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Śiva drinks the Kālakūṭa poison, throat turning deep blue; simultaneously the muṇḍamālā is established as a divine emblem for accomplishing the devas’ purpose—fierce yet auspicious.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva (Nīlakaṇṭha)
• Kālakūṭa
• Devas
• Muṇḍamālā

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Śiva bears the world’s poison to protect creation, embodying compassionate guardianship and the power to transmute danger into auspiciousness.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Within Kedārakhaṇḍa, the verse reinforces Mahādeva’s salvific role—the theological heart of Kedāra pilgrimage devotion.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct ritual is stated here; it is a doctrinal-mythic explanation.