Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 102

Devanagari script

शिलावगूहनं तेषां जायते जन्मसप्ततिम् । ज्वलन्तीमायसीं घोरां बहुकण्टकसंवृताम्

Transliteration

śilāvagūhanaṃ teṣāṃ jāyate janmasaptatim | jvalantīmāyasīṃ ghorāṃ bahukaṇṭakasaṃvṛtām

Translation

അവർക്കു എഴുപതു ജന്മം വരെ ‘ശിലാ-ആലിംഗനം’ എന്ന യാതന സംഭവിക്കുന്നു—ഭയങ്കരവും ജ്വലിക്കുന്നതുമായ ഇരുമ്പുകാർാഗാരം, ചുറ്റും അനവധി മുള്ളുകളാൽ പൊതിഞ്ഞത്।

Word by Word

• śilā: stone, rock
• śilā: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śilā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन (Feminine, Nom/Acc, Singular)

• avagūhanam: being hidden/covered (in stone)
• avagūhanam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ava√gūh (धातु) + ana (प्रत्यय) → avagūhana (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः: śilā + avagūhanam (Neuter, Nom, Singular; genitive-determinative compound)

• teṣām: of them
• teṣām: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, बहुवचन (Genitive, Plural)

• jāyate: is born/arises
• jāyate: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √jan (धातु)
• Form: लट्, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, आत्मनेपद (Present, 3rd person, Singular, Ātmanepada)

• janma: birth
• janma: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: janman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रातिपदिक (compound member) (Neuter stem, used in compound)

• saptatim: seventy (births)
• saptatim: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: saptati (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; द्विगु-समासः: janma + saptatim (Feminine, Acc, Singular; numerical compound)

• jvalantīm: blazing
• jvalantīm: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √jval (धातु) → jvalant (कृदन्त)
• Form: वर्तमानकृदन्त (शतृ), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (Present active participle, Feminine, Acc, Singular)

• āyasīm: made of iron
• āyasīm: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: āyasī (प्रातिपदिक) < ayas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (Feminine, Acc, Singular)

• ghorām: terrible
• ghorām: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ghora (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (Feminine, Acc, Singular)

• bahu: many
• bahu: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bahu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रातिपदिक (compound member) (Stem used in compound)

• kaṇṭaka: thorn
• kaṇṭaka: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kaṇṭaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रातिपदिक (compound member) (Masculine stem, used in compound)

• saṃvṛtām: covered/enclosed (with many thorns)
• saṃvṛtām: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sam√vṛ (धातु) → saṃvṛta (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः: bahu-kaṇṭaka + saṃvṛtām (Past participle, Feminine, Acc, Singular; determinative compound)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced from Āvantya Khaṇḍa māhātmya-style narration)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A blazing iron enclosure like a prison, closing in as a ‘stone-embrace’, ringed with dense thorns; terrified beings pressed within, overseen by Yama’s attendants.

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Actions opposed to dharma lead to prolonged suffering across many births; the Purāṇa warns devotees to choose righteous conduct, especially in sacred contexts like the Revā-māhātmya.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The broader setting is the Revā Khaṇḍa (Narmadā/Revā sacred geography) within the Āvantya Khaṇḍa, where the greatness of the Revā-region and its dharmic norms are taught.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct ritual (snāna, dāna, japa, vrata) is stated in this verse; it functions as a karmic warning within the māhātmya narrative.