Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 30

Devanagari script

नागराजोऽपि तं दृष्ट्वा स्वपुत्रं विनिपातितम् । जगाम सोऽपि मूर्च्छां च पुत्रशोकेन पीडितः

Transliteration

nāgarājo'pi taṃ dṛṣṭvā svaputraṃ vinipātitam | jagāma so'pi mūrcchāṃ ca putraśokena pīḍitaḥ

Translation

ナ―ガの王もまた、我が子が打ち倒されて横たわるのを見て、子を失う悲しみに責められ、気を失って倒れた。

Word by Word

• nāga-rājaḥ: king of serpents
• nāga-rājaḥ: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nāga (प्रातिपदिक) + rāja (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन; षष्ठी/तत्पुरुष-समासः (नागानां राजा)

• api: also
• api: Sambandha (Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (समुच्चय/अपि-कार) — 'also/even'

• tam: him
• tam: Karma (Object of 'dṛṣṭvā')
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन

• dṛṣṭvā: having seen
• dṛṣṭvā: Kriya (पूर्वक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dṛś (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund), परस्मैपदी; 'having seen'

• sva-putram: his own son
• sva-putram: Karma (Object/apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sva (प्रातिपदिक) + putra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन; कर्मधारय-समासः (स्वः पुत्रः)

• vinipātitam: fallen down, struck down
• vinipātitam: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vinipātita (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; √pat (धातु) + णिच् + क्त, वि-नि-उपसर्ग)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त विशेषण

• jagāma: went, fell into
• jagāma: Kriya (Action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: gam (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), परस्मैपदी, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन

• saḥ: he
• saḥ: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन

• api: also
• api: Sambandha (Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (समुच्चय/अपि-कार) — 'also'

• mūrcchām: fainting, swoon
• mūrcchām: Karma (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mūrcchā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Conjunction)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (समुच्चय) — 'and'

• putra-śokena: by/with grief for (his) son
• putra-śokena: Karana/Hetu (Instrument/Cause)
• Type: Noun
• Root: putra (प्रातिपदिक) + śoka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (पुत्रस्य शोकः)

• pīḍitaḥ: afflicted
• pīḍitaḥ: Karta (Subject qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pīḍita (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; √pīḍ (धातु) + क्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त

Speaker

Narrator (contextual Purāṇic narration; likely Sūta/Lomaharṣaṇa in Māhātmya style)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: The Nāga-king beholds his fallen son and faints—crown slipping, attendants rushing, the grieving mother nearby; the court’s splendor contrasts with sudden fragility.

Characters & Entities

• Nāgarāja
• Nāga (serpent king)
• son of the Nāgarāja

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Even the mighty are vulnerable to sorrow; Purāṇic dharma narratives prepare the listener for the turn from grief toward right action and ritual duty.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse sits within a Tīrthamāhātmya chapter of the Nāgarakhaṇḍa, but this single śloka does not name the tīrtha explicitly.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None in this verse; it sets the emotional and narrative ground for subsequent rites and counsel.