Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 34

Devanagari script

शैलतुंगस्तनी रम्या प्रमदेव भयातुरा । तेऽपि तत्रासुराः प्राप्ताश्चतुरंगबलान्विताः

Transliteration

śailatuṃgastanī ramyā pramadeva bhayāturā | te'pi tatrāsurāḥ prāptāścaturaṃgabalānvitāḥ

Translation

La charmante Pramadā-devī, aux seins élevés comme des pics de montagne, fut saisie de peur. Là aussi arrivèrent les asuras, pourvus de l’armée aux quatre corps.

Word by Word

• śaila-tuṅga-stanī: having high breasts like mountains
• śaila-tuṅga-stanī: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śaila (प्रातिपदिक) + tuṅga (प्रातिपदिक) + stanī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन; विशेषण (fem. nom. sg.)

• ramyā: beautiful
• ramyā: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ramya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण

• pramadeva: like a lovely woman
• pramadeva: Upamāna-marker (Comparison)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: pramadā (प्रातिपदिक) + iva (अव्यय)
• Form: सन्धि-विग्रहः: pramadā + iva; उपमा-अव्यय (comparative particle)

• bhayāturā: distressed with fear
• bhayāturā: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bhaya (प्रातिपदिक) + ātura (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण; (भयेन आतुरा) तृतीया-तत्पुरुषार्थः

• te: they
• te: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; सर्वनाम

• api: also
• api: Sambandha/Emphasis (Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle), समुच्चय/अपि-अर्थ

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय (locative adverb)

• asurāḥ: demons (asuras)
• asurāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asura (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• prāptāḥ: having arrived
• prāptāḥ: Kriyā (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √āp (धातु) + pra (उपसर्ग); prāpta (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकालिक-कृदन्त (क्त/PPP), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; गत्यर्थे ‘arrived’

• catur-aṅga-bala-anvitāḥ: endowed with fourfold forces
• catur-aṅga-bala-anvitāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: catur (प्रातिपदिक) + aṅga (प्रातिपदिक) + bala (प्रातिपदिक) + anvita (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषण; (चतुरङ्गं बलं येषां ते) समासार्थः

Speaker

Narrator (Purāṇic narrator within Prabhāsa-khaṇḍa context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Pramadā-devī, adorned and radiant, recoils in fear; in the distance dust rises as the fourfold asura army approaches—elephants, chariots, horsemen, and foot soldiers—under dark banners.

Characters & Entities

• Pramadā-devī
• Asurāḥ
• Caturaṅga-bala (fourfold army)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Worldly power appears formidable, yet it also generates fear—highlighting the need for divine refuge amid conflict.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsakṣetra, as the narrative stage where divine protection confronts demonic militarism.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; the verse sets the scene for the ensuing battle.