Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 41

Devanagari script

अत्यंतं मृगयाश्रांतो हत्वा मृगगणान्बहून् । ऋक्षांश्चैव वराहांश्च सारंगानथ संबरान्

Transliteration

atyaṃtaṃ mṛgayāśrāṃto hatvā mṛgagaṇānbahūn | ṛkṣāṃścaiva varāhāṃśca sāraṃgānatha saṃbarān

Translation

王は狩猟により甚だしく疲れ、数多の鹿の群れを討ち、さらに熊や猪、サーランガの羚羊、そしてシャンバラ鹿をも仕留めていた。

Word by Word

• अत्यन्तम्: exceedingly
• अत्यन्तम्: क्रियाविशेषण
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अत्यन्तम् (अव्यय/नपुंसक-रूप)
• Form: अव्यय; परिमाण/अतिशयवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (adverb of degree)

• मृगया: by hunting
• मृगया: करण (Instrument/means)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मृगया (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental/3rd), एकवचन

• श्रान्तः: tired
• श्रान्तः: कर्ता-विशेषण
• Type: Verb
• Root: श्रम् (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (Past Passive Participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्तरि प्रयोगे ‘tired’

• हत्वा: having killed
• हत्वा: क्रियाविशेषण (Prior action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: हन् (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (Gerund/Absolutive)

• मृगगणान्: groups of deer
• मृगगणान्: कर्म
• Type: Noun
• Root: मृग + गण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (मृगाणां गणाः)

• बहून्: many
• बहून्: कर्म-विशेषण
• Type: Adjective
• Root: बहु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषण (to मृगगणान्)

• ऋक्षान्: bears
• ऋक्षान्: कर्म
• Type: Noun
• Root: ऋक्ष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• च: and
• च: समुच्चय (Coordinator)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयबोधक (conjunction)

• एव: indeed
• एव: निपात (Emphatic particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारण (emphasis/indeed)

• वराहान्: boars
• वराहान्: कर्म
• Type: Noun
• Root: वराह (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• च: and
• च: समुच्चय
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयबोधक

• सारङ्गान्: antelopes (sāraṅga)
• सारङ्गान्: कर्म
• Type: Noun
• Root: सारङ्ग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• अथ: then
• अथ: सम्बन्ध/अनुक्रम (Discourse particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अनुक्रम/अनन्तर (then/next)

• सम्बरान्: sambar deer
• सम्बरान्: कर्म
• Type: Noun
• Root: सम्बर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

Speaker

Narrator (Purāṇic narrator within the Nāgarakhaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya context)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A king, sweat-soaked and dust-covered, carries bow and arrows; attendants drag or carry slain animals—deer, boar, bear—through a harsh midday forest, foreshadowing a turn toward the serene tīrtha.

Characters & Entities

• Bṛhadbala (implied)
• Forest animals (ṛkṣa, varāha, sāraṅga, śambara)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Worldly pursuits exhaust the body and mind, preparing the seeker to value the cooling refuge of sacred waters and dharmic counsel.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The tīrtha is part of the Nāgarakhaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya setting; this verse describes the king’s condition just before the sacred encounter.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly; the verse narrates the king’s hunting fatigue, which leads into bathing and tīrtha-related action later.