Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 27

Devanagari script

न हंतव्यो मृगः कश्चिद्रक्षणीया हि सा मृगी । स्त्रीवेषधारिणी नारी मृगी भवति भूतले

Transliteration

na haṃtavyo mṛgaḥ kaścidrakṣaṇīyā hi sā mṛgī | strīveṣadhāriṇī nārī mṛgī bhavati bhūtale

Translation

Qu’aucun cerf ne soit tué; cette biche, en vérité, doit être protégée. La femme qui porte l’apparence de femme devient biche sur la terre.

Word by Word

• न: not
• न: Pratiṣedha (Negation/निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-अव्यय (negation particle)

• हन्तव्यः: to be killed
• हन्तव्यः: Vidheyaviśeṣaṇa (Predicate adjective)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: हन् (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त (तव्यत्-प्रत्यय, gerundive), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), एकवचन; विधेय-विशेषण

• मृगः: a deer/animal
• मृगः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मृग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), एकवचन

• कश्चित्: any (one)
• कश्चित्: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Noun
• Root: क (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), एकवचन; अनिश्चितार्थक-सर्वनाम (indefinite pronoun)

• रक्षणीया: to be protected
• रक्षणीया: Vidheyaviśeṣaṇa (Predicate adjective)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: रक्ष् (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त (अनीयर्-प्रत्यय, gerundive), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), एकवचन; विधेय-विशेषण

• हि: indeed, for
• हि: Sambandha/Emphasis (निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: हि (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (emphatic/causal particle)

• सा: she/that (female)
• सा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), एकवचन

• मृगी: a doe (female deer)
• मृगी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मृगी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), एकवचन

• स्त्रीवेषधारिणी: wearing a woman’s disguise
• स्त्रीवेषधारिणी: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स्त्री (प्रातिपदिक) + वेष (प्रातिपदिक) + धारिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), एकवचन; उपपद-तत्पुरुष (स्त्रीवेषं धारयतीति)

• नारी: a woman
• नारी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नारी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), एकवचन

• मृगी: a doe
• मृगी: Vidheyapada (Predicate/विधेय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मृगी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), एकवचन; विधेय (predicate noun)

• भवति: becomes/is
• भवति: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथम-पुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• भूतले: on the earth/ground
• भूतले: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भूतल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative), एकवचन

Speaker

King Bhoja (within Śiva’s narration)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Vastrāpatha-kṣetra (within Prabhāsa)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A compassionate injunction in a sacred forest: hunters pause as an elder/authority declares that no deer is to be killed; the doe is singled out for protection, hinting at a woman’s fate bound to animal form.

Characters & Entities

• King Bhoja
• Deer
• Doe (mṛgī)
• Woman (nārī)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Compassion and protection (rakṣā) override violence; dharma in a sacred setting demands restraint and care for vulnerable beings.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse belongs to the Vastrāpatha-kṣetra māhātmya narrative, where the forest-mountain setting becomes the stage for tīrtha significance.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

A clear ethical injunction is given: do not kill any deer, and protect the particular doe—an application of ahiṃsā within the sacred narrative.