Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 27

Devanagari script

किमित्थं राज्यभोगांस्त्वं त्यक्त्वा विजनमाश्रितः । किं त्वया विहितं ध्यानं किं रौद्रं संश्रितं तपः

Transliteration

kimitthaṃ rājyabhogāṃstvaṃ tyaktvā vijanamāśritaḥ | kiṃ tvayā vihitaṃ dhyānaṃ kiṃ raudraṃ saṃśritaṃ tapaḥ

Translation

«Pourquoi as-tu délaissé les jouissances royales pour te réfugier dans la solitude ? Quelle sorte de dhyāna as-tu entrepris, et à quelle austérité farouche (tapas) t’es-tu voué ?»

Word by Word

• kim: why?/what?
• kim: Sambandha (Interrogative/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kim (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययवत्-प्रयोगः; प्रश्नार्थक (interrogative particle)

• ittham: thus, in this way
• ittham: Sambandha (Manner/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ittham (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकार-वाचक (adverb of manner)

• rājya-bhogān: royal enjoyments
• rājya-bhogān: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rājya (प्रातिपदिक) + bhoga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया-विभक्ति; बहुवचन

• tvam: you
• tvam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yusmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रथमा-विभक्ति; एकवचन; मध्यम-पुरुषार्थे (2nd-person pronoun)

• tyaktvā: having abandoned
• tyaktvā: Purvakala-kriya (Prior action/पूर्वकाल-क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √tyaj (धातु) + ktvā (क्त्वा)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (gerund); पूर्वकालिक-क्रिया

• vijanam: a lonely place
• vijanam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vijana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया-विभक्ति; एकवचन

• āśritaḥ: having resorted to
• āśritaḥ: Karta (Predicate/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ā + √śri (धातु) + kta (कृत् प्रत्यय)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past participle, intransitive sense); पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-विभक्ति; एकवचन

• kim: what?/why?
• kim: Sambandha (Interrogative/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kim (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययवत्-प्रयोगः; प्रश्नार्थक

• tvayā: by you
• tvayā: Kartr (Agent/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yusmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तृतीया-विभक्ति; एकवचन

• vihitam: performed, arranged
• vihitam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vi + √dhā (धातु) + kta (कृत् प्रत्यय)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle); नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया-विभक्ति; एकवचन; विशेषणम् (agreeing with dhyānam)

• dhyānam: meditation
• dhyānam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dhyāna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया-विभक्ति; एकवचन

• kim: what?/why?
• kim: Sambandha (Interrogative/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kim (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययवत्-प्रयोगः; प्रश्नार्थक

• raudram: fierce, terrible
• raudram: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: raudra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया-विभक्ति; एकवचन; विशेषणम् (agreeing with tapaḥ)

• saṃśritam: resorted to, undertaken
• saṃśritam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sam + √śri (धातु) + kta (कृत् प्रत्यय)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past participle, intransitive sense); नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया-विभक्ति; एकवचन; विशेषणम् (agreeing with tapaḥ)

• tapaḥ: austerity, penance
• tapaḥ: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tapas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया-विभक्ति; एकवचन

Speaker

Jīva (addressing Indra/Purandara, by context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: cave

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Jīva confronts the withdrawn figure in a lonely cave/forest clearing; the ascetic sits amid austerity signs, while devas stand behind Jīva; the mood is stern but controlled.

Characters & Entities

• Jīva
• Indra (Purandara, implied)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

True authority is accountable to dharma; when shaken by fault or fear, one may seek solitude and austerity, but must also face responsibility.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Not named in this verse; it is part of the narrative that culminates in seeking a sage’s grace connected to sacred geography.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Dhyāna and tapas are referenced generally, not as a specific vow, bath, or donation.