Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 102

Devanagari script

पत्तयश्च महाकाया महेष्वासा महाबलाः । असिचर्मधराश्चान्ये प्रासपट्टिशपाणयः

Transliteration

pattayaśca mahākāyā maheṣvāsā mahābalāḥ | asicarmadharāścānye prāsapaṭṭiśapāṇayaḥ

Translation

Il y avait des fantassins au corps immense, de grands archers à la force redoutable ; d’autres portaient l’épée et le bouclier, tenant en main la lance et la hache de guerre.

Word by Word

• pattayaḥ: infantrymen/foot-soldiers
• pattayaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: patti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• mahā-kāyāḥ: of huge bodies
• mahā-kāyāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjectival qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + kāya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; कर्मधारयः—महान् कायः येषां ते

• mahā-iṣvāsāḥ: great archers (with great bows)
• mahā-iṣvāsāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjectival qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + iṣvāsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; कर्मधारयः—महान् इष्वासः (धनुः) येषां ते

• mahā-balāḥ: very strong
• mahā-balāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjectival qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + bala (प्रातिपदik)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; कर्मधारयः—महद् बलं येषां ते

• asi-carma-dharāḥ: sword-and-shield bearers
• asi-carma-dharāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asi (प्रातिपदिक) + carma (प्रातिपदिक) + dhara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः/उपपद-तत्पुरुषः—असिं च चर्म च धारयन्ति इति

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• anye: others
• anye: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: anya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• prāsa-paṭṭiśa-pāṇayaḥ: those with spears and axes in hand
• prāsa-paṭṭiśa-pāṇayaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prāsa (प्रातिपदिक) + paṭṭiśa (प्रातिपदिक) + pāṇi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; बहुव्रीहिवत्-उपपद-तत्पुरुषः—प्रासः/पट्टिशः पाणौ येषां ते

Speaker

Narrator (Purāṇic voice, contextually Sūta)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A dense wall of infantry: huge-bodied soldiers, elite archers, others with sword-and-shield, spears and battle-axes raised; ranks bristle like a forest of weapons.

Characters & Entities

• Arbuda-parvata

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Physical might and weaponry are limited; when aligned with adharma, they become causes of greater bondage and ruin.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Arbuda-parvata remains the sacred setting, though the verse focuses on the army’s composition.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None.