Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 26

Devanagari script

वसुपादं विंशद्भुजं महाकायं महाबलम् । कालांजननिभं चैव दंष्ट्रिणं रक्तलोचनम्

Transliteration

vasupādaṃ viṃśadbhujaṃ mahākāyaṃ mahābalam | kālāṃjananibhaṃ caiva daṃṣṭriṇaṃ raktalocanam

Translation

Aux pieds nombreux, aux vingt bras, au corps immense et à la force prodigieuse; noir comme le khôl, pourvu de crocs et d’yeux rouges.

Word by Word

• वसुपादम्: having splendid/vasu-like feet
• वसुपादम्: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjective of object)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वसु + पाद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; बहुव्रीहि (one whose feet are like 'vasu'/excellent/wealthy—epithet)

• विंशद्भुजम्: twenty-armed
• विंशद्भुजम्: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjective of object)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: विंशत् + भुज (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; बहुव्रीहि (one who has twenty arms)

• महाकायम्: huge-bodied
• महाकायम्: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjective of object)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महा + काय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्मधारय (great-bodied)

• महाबलम्: very strong
• महाबलम्: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjective of object)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महा + बल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्मधारय (great in strength)

• कालाञ्जननिभम्: resembling black collyrium
• कालाञ्जननिभम्: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjective of object)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: काल + अञ्जन + निभ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; उपमान-तत्पुरुष (like black collyrium)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• एव: indeed
• एव: Sambandha (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: निश्चय/अवधारण-अव्यय (emphatic particle)

• दंष्ट्रिणम्: fang-toothed
• दंष्ट्रिणम्: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjective of object)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दंष्ट्रिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; इन्-प्रत्ययान्त (possessive adjective: 'having fangs')

• रक्तलोचनम्: red-eyed
• रक्तलोचनम्: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjective of object)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: रक्त + लोचन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; बहुव्रीहि (one whose eyes are red)

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) to the sages (deduced)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A colossal rākṣasa-form is described in hyperbolic detail: many feet, twenty arms, huge torso, black as collyrium, protruding fangs, and blood-red eyes—an icon of overwhelming, night-like power.

Characters & Entities

• Rāvaṇa

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

It portrays overwhelming might as morally neutral until directed by dharma—power without restraint becomes a warning in Purāṇic ethics.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse is part of Prabhāsakṣetra Māhātmya, within the Skanda Purana’s celebration of Prabhāsa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it is a descriptive verse.