Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 5

Devanagari script

कदलीसारनिःसारे मृगतृष्णेव चञ्चले । स्थावरे जङ्गमे सर्वे भूतग्रामे चतुर्विधे

Transliteration

kadalīsāraniḥsāre mṛgatṛṣṇeva cañcale | sthāvare jaṅgame sarve bhūtagrāme caturvidhe

Translation

ഈ ഭൂതഗ്രാമം—ചതുര്വിധം—സ്ഥാവരമായാലും ജംഗമമായാലും, എല്ലാം വാഴത്തണ്ടിന്റെ സാരമില്ലാത്ത പിത്തുപോലെ നിസ്സാരവും, മൃഗതൃഷ്ണപോലെ ചഞ്ചലവും ആകുന്നു।

Word by Word

• कदलीसारनिःसारे: in (what is) as hollow as banana-pith
• कदलीसारनिःसारे: Adhikarana (Location/Condition/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कदली + सार + निःसार (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (कदलीसारस्य निःसारः = as insubstantial as banana-pith)

• मृगतृष्णा: a mirage
• मृगतृष्णा: Upamana (Standard of comparison/उपमान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मृग + तृष्णा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (मृगस्य तृष्णा = mirage)

• इव: like
• इव: Upamana (Simile marker/उपमान)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; उपमावाचक (like/as)

• चञ्चले: in the fickle (world/state)
• चञ्चले: Adhikarana (Location/Condition/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: चञ्चल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन; विशेषणम् (संसारे/लोके अध्याहृते)

• स्थावरे: among immobile beings
• स्थावरे: Adhikarana (Domain/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्थावर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन; द्वन्द्व-समुच्चयस्य एकदेशः (स्थावरे जङ्गमे)

• जङ्गमे: among mobile beings
• जङ्गमे: Adhikarana (Domain/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जङ्गम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन; (स्थावरे जङ्गमे) समुच्चयः

• सर्वे: all
• सर्वे: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषणम् (भूताः/प्राणिनः अध्याहृताः)

• भूतग्रामे: in the multitude of beings
• भूतग्रामे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भूत + ग्राम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन; समासः—षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (भूतानां ग्रामः = collection of beings)

• चतुर्विधे: fourfold
• चतुर्विधे: Adhikarana (Qualifier in locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: चतुर् + विध (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (चतुर्णां विधीनां समाहारः/चारः प्रकारः) विशेषणम् (भूतग्रामे)

Speaker

Śrī Mārkaṇḍeya (contextual continuation)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā (Narmadā) teaching-context for vairāgya

Type: river

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Yudhiṣṭhira

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Allegorical nature imagery: a shimmering desert mirage and a split banana trunk showing hollow pith, juxtaposed with diverse beings (plants, animals, humans) to illustrate universal insubstantiality.

Characters & Entities

• Bhūtagrāma
• Sthāvara
• Jaṅgama

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Recognizing the insubstantial and illusory nature of worldly existence nurtures detachment and turns the mind toward dharma and liberation.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Not named in the verse; within Revā-khaṇḍa it frames why the Narmadā tīrthas are sought as a corrective to worldly instability.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit ritual; it functions as a contemplative instruction supporting tapas, vrata, and tīrtha-yātrā.