Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 12

Devanagari script

अश्वारोहसहस्राणि ह्यशीतिः शस्त्रपाणिनाम् । रथानां त्रिसहस्राणि विंशतिर्भरतर्षभ

Transliteration

aśvārohasahasrāṇi hyaśītiḥ śastrapāṇinām | rathānāṃ trisahasrāṇi viṃśatirbharatarṣabha

Translation

ആയിരക്കണക്കിന് അശ്വാരോഹികൾ ഉണ്ടായിരുന്നു; കൈകളിൽ ശസ്ത്രം ധരിച്ച എൺപത് യോദ്ധാക്കൾ; കൂടാതെ മൂവായിരത്തി ഇരുപത് രഥങ്ങളും ഉണ്ടായിരുന്നു, ഹേ ഭരതശ്രേഷ്ഠാ.

Word by Word

• aśvāroha-sahasrāṇi: thousands of horsemen
• aśvāroha-sahasrāṇi: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: aśva (प्रातिपदिक) + āroha (प्रातिपदिक) + sahasra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष (सम्बन्ध): अश्वानाम् आरोहाः (horsemen) तेषां सहस्राणि; नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), बहुवचन

• hi: indeed
• hi: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात-अव्यय (emphatic/indeed)

• aśītiḥ: eighty
• aśītiḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: aśīti (प्रातिपदिक/संख्या)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; संख्यावाचक

• śastra-pāṇinām: of those with weapons in hand
• śastra-pāṇinām: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śastra (प्रातिपदिक) + pāṇin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष: शस्त्रं पाणौ येषाम्; पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), बहुवचन

• rathānām: of chariots
• rathānām: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ratha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), बहुवचन

• tri-sahasrāṇi: three thousands
• tri-sahasrāṇi: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tri (संख्या) + sahasra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: द्विगु-समास: त्रि-सहस्राणि; नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), बहुवचन

• viṃśatiḥ: twenty
• viṃśatiḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viṃśati (प्रातिपदिक/संख्या)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; संख्यावाचक

• bharata-ṛṣabha: O bull among the Bharatas
• bharata-ṛṣabha: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bharata (प्रातिपदिक) + ṛṣabha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सम्बोधन-तत्पुरुष (vocative epithet): भरतानां ऋषभः; पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/Vocative), एकवचन

Speaker

Narrator within the Revā Khaṇḍa (contextual speaker not explicit in the snippet)

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Addressed figure styled ‘bharatarṣabha’ (epic vocative)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A panoramic mustering: cavalry ranks, weapon-bearing elites, and a long line of chariots—numbers emphasized—set against dust and banners.

Characters & Entities

• Bharata lineage (addressed as Bharatarṣabha)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

It sets a dharmic backdrop where worldly power and martial strength become instruments within a larger moral narrative of protection and justice.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

This verse is part of the Revā Khaṇḍa’s sacred geography, but this specific line focuses on military enumeration rather than directly praising a named tīrtha.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None in this verse; it is descriptive (numbers of troops and chariots).