Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 17

Devanagari script

स क्रोधरक्तनयनो मन्त्रिणो वीक्ष्य नैगमान् । ईदृग्भूतसमाचारो ब्राह्मणो नगरे मम

Transliteration

sa krodharaktanayano mantriṇo vīkṣya naigamān | īdṛgbhūtasamācāro brāhmaṇo nagare mama

Translation

അവൻ കോപത്തിൽ ചുവന്ന കണ്ണുകളോടെ മന്ത്രിമാരെയും നഗരജനങ്ങളെയും നോക്കി പറഞ്ഞു—‘ഇത്തരമൊരു ആചാരമുള്ള ബ്രാഹ്മണൻ എന്റെ നഗരത്തിൽ എങ്ങനെ ഉണ്ടാകും?’

Word by Word

• सः: he
• सः: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्

• क्रोध-रक्त-नयनः: whose eyes were reddened with anger
• क्रोध-रक्त-नयनः: Karta (Subject qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: क्रोध (प्रातिपदिक) + रक्त (प्रातिपदिक) + नयन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: बहुव्रीहिः: क्रोधेन रक्तानि नयनानि यस्य; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्

• मन्त्रिणः: the ministers
• मन्त्रिणः: Karma (Object of ‘वीक्ष्य’)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मन्त्रिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), बहुवचनम्

• वीक्ष्य: having looked at
• वीक्ष्य: Kriya-viseshana (Prior action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वीक्ष् (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund)

• नैगमान्: the townsmen/merchants (guildsmen)
• नैगमान्: Karma (Object of ‘वीक्ष्य’/implied speech)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नैगम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, बहुवचनम्

• ईदृक्-भूत-समाचारः: one whose report/news was of such a kind
• ईदृक्-भूत-समाचारः: Karta (Subject qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ईदृक् (प्रातिपदिक) + भूत (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक) + समाचार (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: बहुव्रीहिः: ईदृग्भूतः समाचारः यस्य; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्

• ब्राह्मणः: a Brahmin
• ब्राह्मणः: Karta (Subject apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्राह्मण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्

• नगरे: in the city
• नगरे: Adhikarana (Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नगर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचनम्

• मम: my
• मम: Shashthi-sambandha (Possessor)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचनम्

Speaker

King (implied by address to ministers and concern for ‘my city’)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A furious king with reddened eyes turns toward ministers and townsmen in assembly, questioning how such a misbehaving ‘brāhmaṇa’ could exist in his city; tense court atmosphere.

Characters & Entities

• King
• Ministers (mantriṇaḥ)
• Townsmen (naigamāḥ)
• Brahmin (brāhmaṇa)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Status without conduct is condemned; dharma is measured by ācāra (right behavior), and rulers must safeguard moral order.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific tīrtha is named; the focus is on governance and dharma within a city setting.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it is a statement of rajadharma and moral outrage.