Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 5

Devanagari script

ऋषय ऊचुः । माहिषेण स्वरूपेण किंजातः सूतनंदन । अथवा शापदोषेण सञ्जातः केनचिद्वद

Transliteration

ṛṣaya ūcuḥ | māhiṣeṇa svarūpeṇa kiṃjātaḥ sūtanaṃdana | athavā śāpadoṣeṇa sañjātaḥ kenacidvada

Translation

仙人たちは言った。「スータの子よ、なぜ彼は水牛の姿で生まれたのか。あるいは何らかの呪詛の過失によってそのようになったのか。われらに語れ。」

Word by Word

• ṛṣayaḥ: the sages
• ṛṣayaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ṛṣi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; कर्ता

• ūcuḥ: said
• ūcuḥ: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), बहुवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• māhiṣeṇa: with buffalo (nature)
• māhiṣeṇa: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: māhiṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन; करण (by/with buffalo form)

• svarūpeṇa: with (his) own form
• svarūpeṇa: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sva-rūpa (प्रातिपदिक; स्व + रूप)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन; करण

• kim: what/why
• kim: Sambandha (Interrogative/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; प्रश्न (interrogative)

• jātaḥ: was born/became
• jātaḥ: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: jan (धातु)
• Form: क्त (past participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; कर्तरि (born/became)

• sūtanaṃdana: O son of Sūta
• sūtanaṃdana: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sūta-nandana (प्रातिपदिक; सूत + नन्दन)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th), एकवचन; सम्बोधनम्

• athavā: or else
• athavā: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: athavā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; विकल्पार्थक (disjunctive particle)

• śāpadoṣeṇa: due to a curse
• śāpadoṣeṇa: Hetu/Karana (Cause/Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śāpa-doṣa (प्रातिपदिक; शाप + दोष)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन; करण/हेतु (instrument/cause: due to curse-fault)

• sañjātaḥ: came to be
• sañjātaḥ: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-jan (धातु)
• Form: क्त (past participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; कर्तरि (arisen/come to be)

• kenacit: by someone / somehow
• kenacit: Hetu/Karana (Cause/Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन; अनिश्चित-प्रयोग (indefinite: by someone/for some reason)

• vada: tell
• vada: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vad (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (Imperative), मध्यमपुरुष (2nd), एकवचन; परस्मैपदम्

Speaker

Ṛṣis (the sages)

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Sūta

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Sages lean forward, one pointing as if distinguishing two causal paths—‘natural form’ vs ‘curse’; Sūta listens poised to answer; behind them a symbolic split-panel: one side lineage-tree of asuras, other side a sage pronouncing a curse with a glowing word-stream.

Characters & Entities

• Ṛṣis
• Sūta
• Mahiṣa (implied)
• Śāpa (curse)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Purāṇic storytelling links form and fate to causality—karma, śāpa, and moral history—inviting reflective inquiry rather than mere spectacle.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

None directly; it is a narrative inquiry that precedes the Devī-māhātmya explanation.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it is a question about origin and causation.