Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 9

Devanagari script

यत्रयत्र महादेवस्तद्भयान्नृप गच्छति । तत्रतत्र पुनः कामं प्रपश्यति धृतायुधम्

Transliteration

yatrayatra mahādevastadbhayānnṛpa gacchati | tatratatra punaḥ kāmaṃ prapaśyati dhṛtāyudham

Translation

Ô roi, partout où Mahādeva allait, saisi de crainte à son égard, là encore et encore il voyait Kāma, l’arme à la main.

Word by Word

• यत्र: where
• यत्र: Adhikarana (Locative sense)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक अव्यय (relative adverb: where)

• यत्र: wherever
• यत्र: Adhikarana (Locative sense)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: पुनरुक्ति (repetition for distributive sense)

• महादेवः: Mahādeva (Śiva)
• महादेवः: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महा + देव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st case), एकवचन; कर्मधारय-समास (महान् देवः)

• तत्: of that
• तत्: Sambandha (Genitive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th case), एकवचन; सर्वनाम (pronoun)

• भयात्: from fear
• भयात्: Apadana (Ablative: from fear)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th case), एकवचन

• नृप: O king
• नृप: Sambodhana (Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नृप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, संबोधन (Vocative), एकवचन

• गच्छति: goes
• गच्छति: Kriya (Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √गम् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (Locative sense)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक अव्यय (there)

• तत्र: in each place
• तत्र: Adhikarana (Locative sense)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: पुनरुक्ति (distributive: in each such place)

• पुनः: again
• पुनः: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पुनः (अव्यय)
• Form: काल/पुनरावृत्तिवाचक अव्यय (again)

• कामम्: Kāma
• कामम्: Karma (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: काम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd case), एकवचन

• प्रपश्यति: sees clearly / beholds
• प्रपश्यति: Kriya (Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र + √पश्/√दृश् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• धृतायुधम्: holding a weapon (bow)
• धृतायुधम्: Visheshana (Qualifier of kāmam)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: धृत + आयुध (प्रातिपदिक; धृत = √धृ (धातु) क्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd case), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (धृतम् आयुधं यस्य/धृतायुधः) रूपेण विशेषण

Speaker

Sūta (deduced: Prabhāsakhaṇḍa narrative style)

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Nṛpa (the king) explicitly addressed

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A repeating tableau: Mahādeva strides through changing backdrops (forest, riverbank, mountain, temple-courtyard), yet Kāma appears in each scene with weapon raised—like a refrain—while the king/listener is implied as witnessing the lesson.

Characters & Entities

• Mahādeva (Śiva)
• Kāma
• nṛpa (king/listener)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Unmastered desire can pursue one everywhere; true victory is not mere avoidance but spiritual conquest.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

None directly; the focus is on the repeated encounter with Kāma across places.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; this verse advances the storyline and its moral symbolism.