Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 26

Devanagari script

अनेकबाहूरुधरं नैकवक्त्रं मनोरमम् । सुप्तमेकार्णवे वीरं सहस्राक्षशिरोधरम्

Transliteration

anekabāhūrudharaṃ naikavaktraṃ manoramam | suptamekārṇave vīraṃ sahasrākṣaśirodharam

Translation

ഏകാർണവത്തിൽ ശയനിക്കുന്ന ആ വീരപ്രഭുവിനെ ഞാൻ ദർശിക്കുന്നു—മനോഹരൻ, അനേകം ഭുജങ്ങളും ശക്തമായ ഊരുക്കളും ഉള്ളവൻ, അനേകം മുഖങ്ങളുള്ളവൻ, സഹസ്ര നേത്ര-ശിരസ്സുകൾ ധരിച്ചവൻ।

Word by Word

• अनेक-बाहु-ऊरु-धरम्: having many arms and thighs
• अनेक-बाहु-ऊरु-धरम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अनेक (प्रातिपदिक) + बाहु (प्रातिपदिक) + ऊरु (प्रातिपदिक) + धर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: बहुव्रीहि-समास (अनेकाः बाहवः ऊरवश्च यस्य), पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; Accusative singular

• न-एक-वक्त्रम्: not having a single face (many-faced)
• न-एक-वक्त्रम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: न (अव्यय) + एक (प्रातिपदिक) + वक्त्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नञ्-तत्पुरुष (न एकं वक्त्रं यस्य), नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्ग विशेषण, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; Accusative singular

• मनोरमम्: charming
• मनोरमम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मनोरम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग विशेषण, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; Accusative singular

• सुप्तम्: asleep
• सुप्तम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √स्वप् (धातु) → सुप्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त-प्रत्यय), पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; Accusative singular; ‘asleep’

• एक-अर्णवे: in the single ocean (primeval ocean)
• एक-अर्णवे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: एक (प्रातिपदिक) + अर्णव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास; पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; Locative singular

• वीरम्: the hero
• वीरम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वीर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; Accusative singular

• सहस्र-अक्ष-शिरो-धरम्: bearing a thousand eyes and heads
• सहस्र-अक्ष-शिरो-धरम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सहस्र (प्रातिपदिक) + अक्ष (प्रातिपदिक) + शिरस् (प्रातिपदिक) + धर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: बहुव्रीहि-समास (सहस्राणि अक्षाणि शिरांसि च यस्य/धारयति), पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; Accusative singular

Speaker

Unspecified narrator (within Revā Khaṇḍa context; likely a ṛṣi/narrator describing a vision)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A panoramic cosmic tableau: endless dark waters; the Lord asleep in yogic repose, yet ‘heroic’; multiple arms and faces; a crown-like expanse of eyes and heads suggesting viśvarūpa.

Characters & Entities

• Īśāna
• Śaṅkara (implied in the surrounding passage)
• Ekārṇava (cosmic ocean)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Even in cosmic dissolution, the Supreme Lord remains present—vast, many-formed, and worthy of contemplative remembrance.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

This verse functions as a cosmic-theological backdrop within the Revā Khaṇḍa; the broader section is tied to the sanctity of the Revā (Narmadā) region rather than naming a single tirtha in this line.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct ritual instruction appears in this verse; it is primarily a darśana (vision) description.