Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 24

Devanagari script

ततोऽसौ सप्तमे जातः शशकश्चैव जन्मनि । ततोऽसौ राक्षसो जातः पापात्मा सर्वभक्षकः

Transliteration

tato'sau saptame jātaḥ śaśakaścaiva janmani | tato'sau rākṣaso jātaḥ pāpātmā sarvabhakṣakaḥ

Translation

Puis, à la septième naissance, il naquit en tant que lièvre ; par la suite, il naquit en tant que Rākṣasa, de nature pécheresse et dévoreur de tout.

Word by Word

• tataḥ: then, thereafter
• tataḥ: Kriya-viśeṣaṇa (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: काल/क्रमवाचक-अव्यय (adverb: then/thereafter)

• asau: he
• asau: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: adas (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन (demonstrative pronoun)

• saptame: in the seventh
• saptame: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: saptama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative), एकवचन; ‘janmani’ इत्यस्य विशेषण

• jātaḥ: was born
• jātaḥ: Kriya (Predicative)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: jan (धातु) + kta (कृत्-प्रत्यय)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (PPP), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; ‘born’

• śaśakaḥ: a hare/rabbit
• śaśakaḥ: Karta (Subject complement)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śaśaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

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

• eva: indeed
• eva: Avadhāraṇa (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारण-अव्यय (emphatic particle)

• janmani: in (that) birth
• janmani: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: janman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• tataḥ: then
• tataḥ: Kriya-viśeṣaṇa (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: क्रमवाचक-अव्यय

• asau: he
• asau: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: adas (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• rākṣasaḥ: a demon (rākṣasa)
• rākṣasaḥ: Karta (Subject complement)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rākṣasa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• jātaḥ: was born
• jātaḥ: Kriya (Predicative)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: jan (धातु) + kta (कृत्-प्रत्यय)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त, पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• pāpa-ātmā: sinful-natured
• pāpa-ātmā: Karta (Apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pāpa (प्रातिपदिक) + ātman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; बहुव्रीहि: ‘pāpaḥ ātmā yasya saḥ’ = whose nature/soul is sinful

• sarva-bhakṣakaḥ: devourer of all
• sarva-bhakṣakaḥ: Karta (Apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक) + bhakṣaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; उपपद-तत्पुरुष: ‘sarvān bhakṣayati’ = eater of all

Speaker

Sūta (deduced: Purāṇic narration within Prabhāsa Khaṇḍa)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Dvārāvatī/Dvārakā (implied as forthcoming salvific sight)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: King Dilīpa (addressed in nearby verses)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A sequence-panel depiction of saṃsāra: the same jīva passing from hare-form to a fearsome rākṣasa, shadowed by karmic chains; distant, luminous Dvārāvatī hinted as future refuge.

Characters & Entities

• śaśaka (hare)
• rākṣasa

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Karma can propel the soul through varied births—sometimes seemingly disparate—until purification occurs; adharma culminates in harsher natures and lives.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No direct tīrtha praise appears in this verse; it continues the karmic narrative within the Dvārakā Māhātmya chapter.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None.