Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 8

Devanagari script

अग्निखुरा ह्यग्निपृष्ठा अग्निसर्वाङ्गसंस्थितिः । सर्वलक्षणसम्पूर्णा घण्टाललितनिःस्वना

Transliteration

agnikhurā hyagnipṛṣṭhā agnisarvāṅgasaṃsthitiḥ | sarvalakṣaṇasampūrṇā ghaṇṭālalitaniḥsvanā

Translation

ಅವಳ ಕುದುರೆಕಾಲಿನ ಖುರಗಳು ಅಗ್ನಿಮಯ, ಬೆನ್ನೂ ಅಗ್ನಿಮಯ; ಅವಳ ಸರ್ವಾಂಗದಲ್ಲೂ ಅಗ್ನಿಯೇ ವ್ಯಾಪಿಸಿದ್ದಿತು. ಅವಳು ಎಲ್ಲ ಶುಭಲಕ್ಷಣಗಳಿಂದ ಸಂಪೂರ್ಣಳಾಗಿದ್ದು, ಅವಳ ಗಂಟೆಯ ಧ್ವನಿ ಮೃದು-ಮಧುರವಾಗಿತ್ತು.

Word by Word

• अग्नि-खुरा: fire-hoofed
• अग्नि-खुरा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: agni (प्रातिपदिक) + khura (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); विशेषण (qualifying कपिला)

• हि: indeed
• हि: Sambandha (Discourse particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: निश्चयबोधक-अव्यय (particle: indeed)

• अग्नि-पृष्ठा: fire-backed
• अग्नि-पृष्ठा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: agni (प्रातिपदिक) + pṛṣṭha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); विशेषण (qualifying कपिला)

• अग्नि-सर्व-अङ्ग-संस्थितिः: whose whole-body constitution is fire
• अग्नि-सर्व-अङ्ग-संस्थितिः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: agni (प्रातिपदिक) + sarva (प्रातिपदिक) + aṅga (प्रातिपदिक) + saṃsthiti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); बहुपद-तत्पुरुषसमास (having fire as the state/constitution of all limbs)

• सर्व-लक्षण-सम्पूर्णा: complete with all marks
• सर्व-लक्षण-सम्पूर्णा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक) + lakṣaṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + sampūrṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); विशेषण (qualifying कपिला)

• घण्टा-ललित-निःस्वना: having a sweet bell-like sound
• घण्टा-ललित-निःस्वना: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ghaṇṭā (प्रातिपदिक) + lalita (प्रातिपदिक) + niḥsvana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); विशेषण (qualifying कपिला)

Speaker

Mārkaṇḍeya (narrating)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kapilā Tīrtha

Type: kund

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Rājā (Bhārata)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Kapilā stands fully emerged: hooves and spine glowing like embers, the entire body suffused with fire-patterns; a bell at her neck rings with delicate resonance; her posture is calm and beneficent, surrounded by a halo of heat and auspicious symbols.

Characters & Entities

• Kapilā

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

A tīrtha’s holiness is signaled through auspicious marks and divine presence, encouraging reverence toward sanctified landscapes.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kapilā-tīrtha, whose origin narrative features Kapilā’s miraculous, auspicious appearance.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None directly; the verse continues the iconographic description that grounds the tīrtha’s authority.