Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 49

Devanagari script

अरिष्टो धेनुकः केशी प्रलम्बोनाम चापरः । तथान्या तु महारौद्रा पूतना नाम राक्षसी

Transliteration

ariṣṭo dhenukaḥ keśī pralambonāma cāparaḥ | tathānyā tu mahāraudrā pūtanā nāma rākṣasī

Translation

Ariṣṭa, Dhenuka, Keśī, et un autre nommé Pralamba ; et aussi cette autre, d’une effroyable férocité — la rākṣasī appelée Pūtanā.

Word by Word

• ariṣṭaḥ: Ariṣṭa (name of a demon)
• ariṣṭaḥ: Karta (Subject; list item)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ariṣṭa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-एकवचन

• dhenukaḥ: Dhenuka
• dhenukaḥ: Karta (Subject; list item)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dhenuka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-एकवचन

• keśī: Keśī
• keśī: Karta (Subject; list item)
• Type: Noun
• Root: keśin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-एकवचन

• pralambaḥ: Pralamba
• pralambaḥ: Karta (Subject; list item)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pralamba (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-एकवचन

• nāma: named
• nāma: Sambandha (Appositive marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: nāma (अव्यय)
• Form: नाम-शब्दः (indeclinable; naming particle)

• ca: and
• ca: Samuccaya (Conjunction)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• aparaḥ: another
• aparaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: apara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-एकवचन

• tathā: likewise
• tathā: Kriyā-viśeṣaṇa (Discourse adverb)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: रीतिवाचक-अव्यय (adverb: likewise)

• anyā: another (female)
• anyā: Karta (Subject; list item)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: anya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-एकवचन

• tu: but, indeed
• tu: Sambandha (Discourse particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: विरोध/अन्वय-अव्यय (particle: but/indeed)

• mahāraudrā: very fierce
• mahāraudrā: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + raudrā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-एकवचन; कर्मधारय (mahā raudrā)

• pūtanā: Pūtanā
• pūtanā: Karta (Subject; list item)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pūtanā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-एकवचन

• nāma: named
• nāma: Sambandha (Appositive marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: nāma (अव्यय)
• Form: नाम-शब्दः (indeclinable; naming particle)

• rākṣasī: a rākṣasī (female demon)
• rākṣasī: Karta (Subject complement)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rākṣasī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-एकवचन

Speaker

Dharaṇī (Earth/Bhūmi)

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Brahmā

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Earth enumerates the daṇava/rākṣasa forces aligned with Kaṃsa: Ariṣṭa, Dhenuka, Keśī, Pralamba, and the dreadful Pūtanā—like a roll-call of looming calamities.

Characters & Entities

• Ariṣṭa
• Dhenuka
• Keśī
• Pralamba
• Pūtanā
• Rākṣasī

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The spread of adharma is shown through many hostile forces; naming them underscores the scale of suffering that calls for divine remedy.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No holy site is explicitly mentioned in this verse.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; this is an enumerative narrative statement.