Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 21

Devanagari script

चन्द्रोऽपि पूर्ववत्सर्वास्ताः परित्यज्य दक्षजाः । रोहिण्या सह संसर्गं प्रचकारानुरागतः

Transliteration

candro'pi pūrvavatsarvāstāḥ parityajya dakṣajāḥ | rohiṇyā saha saṃsargaṃ pracakārānurāgataḥ

Translation

ಚಂದ್ರನು ಹಿಂದಿನಂತೆಯೇ ದಕ್ಷನ ಪುತ್ರಿಯರನ್ನೆಲ್ಲ ತ್ಯಜಿಸಿ, ಅನುರಾಗದಿಂದ ರೋಹಿಣಿಯೊಡನೆ ಸಂಸರ್ಗವನ್ನು ಮುಂದುವರಿಸಿದನು।

Word by Word

• candraḥ: the Moon
• candraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: candra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), एकवचन (Singular)

• api: also
• api: Sambandha/Emphasis (सम्बन्ध/निपातार्थ)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात (particle), अर्थः ‘also/even’

• pūrvavat: as before
• pūrvavat: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: pūrva + vat (प्रातिपदिक/तद्धित)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रियाविशेषण (adverb) ‘as before’

• sarvāḥ: all
• sarvāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (सर्व-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषण (qualifier)

• tāḥ: those (women)
• tāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (तद्-सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; सर्वनाम (pronoun)

• parityajya: having abandoned
• parityajya: Kriyā (पूर्वकालिक-क्रिया)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: pari + tyaj (त्यज्-धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund), अव्ययभाव; ‘having abandoned’

• dakṣajāḥ: the daughters of Dakṣa
• dakṣajāḥ: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dakṣa + jā (जा-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (dakṣasya jāḥ); स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative), बहुवचन

• rohiṇyā: with Rohiṇī
• rohiṇyā: Sahakāraka (सह/साकं-योगे)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rohiṇī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental), एकवचन

• saha: together with
• saha: Sahārtha (सह-अर्थ)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: saha (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; उपसर्गसदृश/सह-योगार्थक (with)

• saṃsargam: association, union
• saṃsargam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: saṃsarga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative), एकवचन

• pracakāra: he did/made
• pracakāra: Kriyā (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra + kṛ (कृ-धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• anurāgataḥ: being attached (affectionate)
• anurāgataḥ: Karta-viśeṣaṇa (कर्तृविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: anu + rāga (राग-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past participle used adjectivally); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; ‘attached/affectionate’

Speaker

Sūta (narrative voice)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Candra, radiant and cool, turns away from the assembled Dakṣa-daughters and remains closely beside Rohiṇī, his posture intimate and unwavering, while the other wives stand abandoned in shadowed sorrow.

Characters & Entities

• Chandra/Soma
• Dakṣa-jāḥ (Dakṣa’s daughters)
• Rohiṇī

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Unchecked attachment leads one back into wrongdoing even after correction; dharma requires sustained restraint, not momentary compliance.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific tīrtha is named in this verse; it advances the moral narrative within the Tīrthamāhātmya chapter.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; the verse highlights a relapse into partiality (an ethical failing).