Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 38

Devanagari script

पद्मो दंभः सुदंभश्च करालो भीषणस्तथा । एते चान्ये च बहवो नागाश्चाशीविषा ह्यमी

Transliteration

padmo daṃbhaḥ sudaṃbhaśca karālo bhīṣaṇastathā | ete cānye ca bahavo nāgāścāśīviṣā hyamī

Translation

Padma, Dambha, Sudambha, Karāla et Bhīṣaṇa : ceux-ci, et bien d’autres Nāgas encore, farouches porteurs de venin, étaient présents en ce lieu.

Word by Word

• पद्मः: Padma (name of a serpent)
• पद्मः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पद्म (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• दंभः: Dambha (name)
• दंभः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दंभ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• सुदंभः: Sudambha (name)
• सुदंभः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सु (उपसर्ग/पूर्वपद) + दंभ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारय (सु+दंभ)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (linker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• करालः: Karāla (name)
• करालः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कराल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• भीषणः: Bhīṣaṇa (name)
• भीषणः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भीषण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• तथा: likewise/also
• तथा: Sambandha (discourse marker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, प्रकारवाचक (adverb)

• एते: these
• एते: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन (pronoun)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (linker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• अन्ये: others
• अन्ये: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अन्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (linker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• बहवः: many
• बहवः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: बहु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषण (qualifying ‘नागाः’)

• नागाः: serpents
• नागाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नाग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (linker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• आशीविषाः: venomous snakes
• आशीविषाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: आशीविष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• हि: indeed
• हि: Sambandha (particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: हि (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात-अव्यय (particle; emphasis)

• अमी: those (these here)
• अमी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अदस् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन (pronoun)

Speaker

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

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kedārakṣetra (Kedāra)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A cavernous or forested Himalayan precinct near Kedāra where numerous named Nāgas—Padma, Dambha, Sudambha, Karāla, Bhīṣaṇa—stand coiled and vigilant, their jewel-like eyes and venomous fangs suggesting both danger and sacred guardianship.

Characters & Entities

• Padma (Nāga)
• Dambha
• Sudambha
• Karāla
• Bhīṣaṇa
• Nāgas

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Śiva’s presence sanctifies and governs even the fearsome; devotion transforms dread into order and reverence.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kedāra’s Śiva is praised as the refuge before whom even venomous Nāgas stand in attendance.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly; the catalog functions as stuti (praise) by describing Śiva’s cosmic court.