Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 22

Devanagari script

नमोऽस्तु सर्वरुद्रेभ्यो येऽध ऊर्ध्वं समाश्रिताः । रक्षंति सकलांल्लोकान्कूष्मांडानां भयात्सदा

Transliteration

namo'stu sarvarudrebhyo ye'dha ūrdhvaṃ samāśritāḥ | rakṣaṃti sakalāṃllokānkūṣmāṃḍānāṃ bhayātsadā

Translation

Hommage à tous les Rudra qui demeurent en bas comme en haut ; eux, sans cesse, protègent tous les mondes de la crainte des kūṣmāṇḍa.

Word by Word

• namaḥ: salutation
• namaḥ: Sambodhana/Address (सम्बोधन-प्रयोग)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: namas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात (salutation particle)

• astu: let it be
• astu: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: as (अस् धातु)
• Form: लोट्, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• sarva-rudrebhyaḥ: to all Rudras
• sarva-rudrebhyaḥ: Sampradana (सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarva (सर्व) + rudra (रुद्र) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी (dative), बहुवचन (रुद्रेभ्यः)

• ye: who
• ye: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (यद्) (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (nominative), बहुवचन; सम्बन्धसूचक (relative pronoun)

• adhaḥ: below
• adhaḥ: Adverbial (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: adhaḥ (अधः)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रियाविशेषण (adverb)

• ūrdhvam: above/upwards
• ūrdhvam: Adverbial (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ūrdhva (ऊर्ध्व) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रियाविशेषण (adverb)

• samāśritāḥ: having resorted to / stationed
• samāśritāḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sam-ā-śri (सम्+आ+श्रि धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (PPP), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; ‘ye’ इत्यस्य विशेषणम्

• rakṣanti: they protect
• rakṣanti: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: rakṣ (रक्ष् धातु)
• Form: लट्, प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन

• sakalān: all
• sakalān: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sakala (सकल) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, बहुवचन; ‘lokān’ विशेषणम्

• lokān: worlds
• lokān: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: loka (लोक) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, बहुवचन

• kūṣmāṇḍānām: of Kūṣmāṇḍas (demons/spirits)
• kūṣmāṇḍānām: Sambandha (षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kūṣmāṇḍa (कूष्माण्ड) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (genitive), बहुवचन

• bhayāt: from fear / due to fear
• bhayāt: Hetu/Cause (हेतु)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhaya (भय) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (ablative), एकवचन; हेतु-अर्थे

• sadā: always
• sadā: Adverbial (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sadā (सदा)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (temporal adverb)

Speaker

Tāpasas (ascetics)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A spherical mandala of protection: Rudras positioned above and below, with the worlds in the middle; kūṣmāṇḍa figures (gourd-like/demonic forms in later iconography) are shown outside the boundary, unable to enter.

Characters & Entities

• Rudras
• Kūṣmāṇḍas

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Rudra’s guardianship is total—above and below—signifying complete spiritual protection for those aligned with dharma.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

This is part of a tīrtha-mahātmya stuti sequence; the site-name is not stated in this verse.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Recitation of salutations to Rudras for protection from malevolent beings.