Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 40

Devanagari script

अथ तत्र प्रदेशे तु माण्डव्यो मुनिपुंगवः । शूलारोपितगात्रस्तु संतिष्ठति सुदुःखितः

Transliteration

atha tatra pradeśe tu māṇḍavyo munipuṃgavaḥ | śūlāropitagātrastu saṃtiṣṭhati suduḥkhitaḥ

Translation

Or, dans cette même contrée se tenait Māṇḍavya, taureau parmi les sages ; le corps empalé sur un pieu, il demeurait là dans une souffrance extrême.

Word by Word

• atha: then
• atha: Sambandha (Discourse/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atha (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अनुक्रमार्थक (then)

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक (locative adverb: 'there')

• pradeśe: in a region/place
• pradeśe: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pradeśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; सप्तमी; एकवचन

• tu: indeed/but
• tu: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; विरोध/अवधारण (but/indeed)

• māṇḍavyaḥ: Māṇḍavya
• māṇḍavyaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: māṇḍavya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन (ऋषिनाम)

• munipuṃgavaḥ: best of sages
• munipuṃgavaḥ: Karta (Apposition/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: muni (प्रातिपदिक) + puṃgava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (षष्ठी: 'munīnāṃ puṃgavaḥ'); पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन

• śūlāropitagātraḥ: whose body was impaled on a stake
• śūlāropitagātraḥ: Karta (Qualifier/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śūla (प्रातिपदिक) + āropita (कृदन्त from ā + ruh/rop धातु) + gātra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (सप्तमी/अधिकरण: 'śūle āropitaṃ gātraṃ yasya'); पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन

• tu: indeed
• tu: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारण/समुच्चय (indeed)

• saṃtiṣṭhati: stands/remains
• saṃtiṣṭhati: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam + sthā (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present); प्रथमपुरुष; एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• suduḥkhitaḥ: very miserable
• suduḥkhitaḥ: Karta (Qualifier/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: su (उपसर्ग/अव्यय) + duḥkhita (प्रातिपदिक; कृदन्त from duḥkh)
• Form: कर्मधारय-समास (su + duḥkhita = 'very afflicted'); पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन

Speaker

Narrator (Purāṇic narrator; likely Sūta/Lomaharṣaṇa in Mahātmya-style narration)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra (Māṇḍavya-sthāna within it)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Pilgrimage audience (not specified)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Māṇḍavya, radiant yet suffering, stands impaled upon a stake in a lonely spot near the kṣetra; his ascetic marks, matted hair, and calm-but-pained face contrast with the brutality of the scene.

Characters & Entities

• Māṇḍavya
• śūla (stake)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Purāṇic narratives often frame suffering as a crucible where dharma, karma, and divine justice are examined.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The episode is situated near/within Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra, tying the narrative to the sanctity of the locale.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None in this verse; it introduces the presence of the sage and his condition.