Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 106

Devanagari script

शिरसस्तस्य तालुक्यखंडमेतद्वृकोदर । योजनद्वादशायामं मृदु क्षिप्तं विचूर्णितम्

Transliteration

śirasastasya tālukyakhaṃḍametadvṛkodara | yojanadvādaśāyāmaṃ mṛdu kṣiptaṃ vicūrṇitam

Translation

“Wahai Vṛkodara, inilah serpihan langit-langit dari kepalanya—dua belas yojana luasnya—yang telah melunak, terhempas ke bawah, dan remuk berkeping-keping.”

Word by Word

• śirasaḥ: of the head
• śirasaḥ: Sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठī)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śiras (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th case), एकवचन (neuter gen sg)

• tasya: of him
• tasya: Sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठī)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th case), एकवचन; सर्वनाम (of him/that)

• tālukya-khaṇḍam: a piece of the palate (region)
• tālukya-khaṇḍam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tālukya + khaṇḍa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (tālukyasya khaṇḍam = piece of the palate region)

• etat: this
• etat: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: etat (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; सर्वनाम (this)

• vṛkodara: O Vṛkodara (Bhima)
• vṛkodara: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vṛka + udara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th case), एकवचन; बहुव्रीहिः (one whose belly is like a wolf; epithet)

• yojana-dvādaśa-āyāmam: twelve-yojanas long
• yojana-dvādaśa-āyāmam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: yojana + dvādaśa + āyāma (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; द्विगु-समासः (measure: 'twelve-yojana in length')

• mṛdu: soft
• mṛdu: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mṛdu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषणम् (neuter nom/acc sg)

• kṣiptam: thrown
• kṣiptam: Karta (Subject-complement/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kṣip (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; कर्मणि (thrown)

• vicūrṇitam: pulverized, shattered
• vicūrṇitam: Karta (Subject-complement/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi-√cūrṇ (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; कर्मणि (crushed to powder)

Speaker

Śrī Kṛṣṇa

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kund

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Vṛkodara (Bhīma)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Kṛṣṇa points to the reduced expanse and explains it is a crushed, softened fragment of Kumbhakarṇa’s palate, twelve yojanas long; the scene juxtaposes calm divinity with unsettling mythic anatomy.

Characters & Entities

• Kṛṣṇa
• Bhīma (Vṛkodara)
• Kumbhakarṇa

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Purāṇic tradition sacralizes geography by reading cosmic history into physical forms.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

A particular tīrtha-name is not specified in this verse; it explains a physical marvel tied to Kumbhakarṇa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None.