Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 84

Devanagari script

हे जनाः किं न पश्यध्वं स्वामिद्रोहकरं परम् । करपत्रैर्विदार्यंतमुच्छलच्छोणितान्तरम्

Transliteration

he janāḥ kiṃ na paśyadhvaṃ svāmidrohakaraṃ param | karapatrairvidāryaṃtamucchalacchoṇitāntaram

Translation

« Ô gens, ne voyez-vous pas ce pire des traîtres envers son seigneur ? Il est déchiqueté par des scies à main, ses entrailles jaillissant de sang. »

Word by Word

• he: O
• he: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: he (अव्यय)
• Form: सम्बोधन-निपात (vocative particle)

• janāḥ: people
• janāḥ: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन — nominative plural used in address

• kim: why/what
• kim: Kriya-vishesana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kim (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन — interrogative used adverbially (‘why?’)

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (Negation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक अव्यय (negation)

• paśyadhvam: do you not see? / see!
• paśyadhvam: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dṛś (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (Imperative/लोट्), आत्मनेपद, मध्यमपुरुष (2nd), बहुवचन — ‘see (you all)!’

• svāmidrohakaram: (one) causing treachery against one’s master
• svāmidrohakaram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: svāmin (प्रातिपदिक) + droha (प्रातिपदिक) + kara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन — accusative singular; समासः तत्पुरुष (स्वामिनि drohaḥ; taṃ karoti iti)

• param: supreme/great
• param: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: para (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन — accusative singular (qualifying previous)

• karapatraiḥ: with saw-like blades
• karapatraiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kara (प्रातिपदिक) + patra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया, बहुवचन — instrumental plural; समासः तत्पुरुष (करस्य पत्रम् = hand-leaf; ‘saw-like blades/hand-knives’)

• vidāryamāṇam: being ripped apart
• vidāryamāṇam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi-dṛ (धातु) + ya-māna (यमान/शानच्)
• Form: वर्तमानकाले कर्मणि शानच्/यमान-प्रत्ययान्त (present passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन — ‘being torn apart’

• ucchalat: gushing/surging
• ucchalat: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ud-√chal (धातु) + śatṛ (शतृ)
• Form: शतृ-प्रत्ययान्त वर्तमान कृदन्त (present active participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया एकवचन — used as first member in compound

• śoṇita: blood
• śoṇita: Sambandha (Compound member/समासाङ्ग)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śoṇita (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रातिपदिक (in compound)

• antaram: interior/inside
• antaram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: antara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन — accusative singular; समासः तत्पुरुष/कर्मधारय-प्रायः: ucchalat-śoṇita-antaram = ‘whose interior is (filled with) gushing blood’

Speaker

Festival announcers/performers (deduced)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A herald-like figure addresses a crowd: the traitor is being ripped by sharp hand-blades (karapatra imagery), entrails and blood depicted in stylized, non-gory symbolic streams; the crowd recoils in horror near a sacred precinct.

Characters & Entities

• svāmidroha (treachery)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Betrayal of one’s rightful lord/guardian is severe adharma; the text uses graphic deterrence to uphold fidelity and social order.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa-kṣetra, whose festival culture is presented as a vehicle for dharmic education.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

A dramatic public warning (prekṣaṇīya) depicting the consequence of svāmi-droha during the utsava.