Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 63

Devanagari script

शब्दादिसङ्गदुष्टानि यदा नाक्षाणि नः शुभाः । तदा नृत्यादयो भावाः कथं लोभप्रदायिनः

Transliteration

śabdādisaṅgaduṣṭāni yadā nākṣāṇi naḥ śubhāḥ | tadā nṛtyādayo bhāvāḥ kathaṃ lobhapradāyinaḥ

Translation

ശബ്ദാദി വിഷയസ്പർശംകൊണ്ട് ഞങ്ങളുടെ ഇന്ദ്രിയങ്ങൾ ദൂഷിതമായി ശുഭമല്ലാതിരിക്കുമ്പോൾ, നൃത്താദി ഭാവങ്ങൾ എങ്ങനെ ലാഭം/ലോഭം നൽകുന്നവയായിരിക്കും?

Word by Word

• शब्दादिसङ्गदुष्टानि: corrupted by association with sound etc.
• शब्दादिसङ्गदुष्टानि: Visheshana (Qualifier of ‘akṣāṇi’)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शब्द-आदि-सङ्ग-दुष्ट (प्रातिपदिक; शब्द + आदि + सङ्ग + दुष्ट)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), बहुवचन; तत्पुरुष-प्राय (शब्दादिसङ्गेन दुष्टानि)

• यदा: when
• यदा: Sambandha (Temporal)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यदा (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक अव्यय (relative adverb: when)

• न: not
• न: Sambandha (Negator)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक अव्यय (negation)

• अक्षाणि: the senses (organs)
• अक्षाणि: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अक्ष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), बहुवचन

• नः: our
• नः: Sambandha (Possessor)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: उत्तम-पुरुष सर्वनाम, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (Genitive), बहुवचन; एन्क्लिटिक

• शुभाः: good/pure
• शुभाः: Visheshana (Predicate adjective)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शुभ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), बहुवचन; (अक्षाणि नपुंसक—अत्र लिङ्गव्यत्यय/पाठभेद सम्भवः; अर्थतः ‘शुभानि’)

• तदा: then
• तदा: Sambandha (Temporal)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तदा (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक अव्यय (then)

• नृत्यादयः: dance and the like
• नृत्यादयः: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नृत्य-आदि (प्रातिपदिक; नृत्य + आदि)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), बहुवचन; तत्पुरुष (नृत्यं आदिः येषाम्)

• भावाः: states/activities
• भावाः: Apposition (To ‘nṛtyādayaḥ’)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भाव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), बहुवचन

• कथम्: how
• कथम्: Sambandha (Interrogative)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: कथम् (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रश्नार्थक अव्यय (interrogative adverb: how)

• लोभप्रदायिनः: giving rise to greed
• लोभप्रदायिनः: Visheshana (Qualifier of ‘bhāvāḥ’)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: लोभ-प्रदायिन् (प्रातिपदिक; लोभ + प्रदायिन्)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), बहुवचन; तत्पुरुष (लोभं प्रददाति इति)

Speaker

Nārāyaṇa

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā-kṣetra (contextual)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Kāma and apsarases (implicitly), with Mādhava present

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A reflective, almost syllogistic moment: the speaker points to the senses as the locus of corruption by sound etc.; dance and display are shown as mere stimuli that fail to produce greed when the senses are auspicious.

Characters & Entities

• Nārāyaṇa

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Craving arises only where the senses are undisciplined; purity of the senses makes temptations powerless.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

None explicitly; it is a moral-psychological teaching within the Revā Khaṇḍa narrative.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit rite; the implied sādhana is indriya-nigraha (sense-restraint).