Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 38

Devanagari script

ये पापाः परदारेषु रक्ता मिष्टामिषेषु वा । तप्तलोहमयान्स्तंभांस्तेऽत्रालिंगंति मानवाः

Transliteration

ye pāpāḥ paradāreṣu raktā miṣṭāmiṣeṣu vā | taptalohamayānstaṃbhāṃste'trāliṃgaṃti mānavāḥ

Translation

Les pécheurs épris des épouses d’autrui, ou attachés aux douceurs et à la viande, sont ici contraints d’étreindre des piliers de fer rougis au feu.

Word by Word

• ye: those who
• ye: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; सम्बन्धबोधक सर्वनाम

• pāpāḥ: sinners
• pāpāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pāpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

• para-dāreṣu: in others' wives
• para-dāreṣu: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: para (प्रातिपदिक) + dāra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), बहुवचन

• raktāḥ: attached/passionate
• raktāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: rakta (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक, √rañj + kta)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त; विशेषणम्

• miṣṭa-āmiṣeṣu: in sweet meats/flesh
• miṣṭa-āmiṣeṣu: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: miṣṭa (प्रातिपदिक) + āmiṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), बहुवचन

• vā: or
• vā: Sambandha (Relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; विकल्पार्थक निपात (disjunctive particle)

• tapta-loha-mayān: heated-iron-made
• tapta-loha-mayān: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tapta (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक) + loha (प्रातिपदिक) + maya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), बहुवचन; विशेषणम्

• staṃbhān: pillars
• staṃbhān: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: staṃbha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), बहुवचन

• te: they
• te: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; सर्वनाम

• atra: here
• atra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (adverb of place)

• āliṅganti: embrace/clasp
• āliṅganti: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ā√liṅg (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन

• mānavāḥ: men/humans
• mānavāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mānava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

Speaker

Skanda (deduced from Nāgarakhaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya narrative style)

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Brāhmaṇa interlocutor

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Condemned sinners are compelled to embrace blazing iron pillars; skin scorches, sparks fly, attendants drive them forward; the scene emphasizes forced contact with heat as karmic mirror of illicit ‘embrace’.

Characters & Entities

• Duḥsaha (implied context)
• Others' wives (paradāra)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Unrestrained lust and compulsive sense-indulgence lead to intense suffering; dharma upholds self-control and fidelity.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific pilgrimage site is named in this shloka; it is a moral-legal warning embedded in a māhātmya chapter.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit ritual is stated; the implied remedy in Purāṇic dharma is restraint, repentance, and charitable, sattvic living.