Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 53

Devanagari script

चौर्यवृत्तिर्नैष्कृतिको वृषलीरतिलालसः । कदाचिज्जारतां प्राप्तः शूद्रेण निहतो निशि

Transliteration

cauryavṛttirnaiṣkṛtiko vṛṣalīratilālasaḥ | kadācijjāratāṃ prāptaḥ śūdreṇa nihato niśi

Translation

അവൻ മോഷണവൃത്തിയാൽ ജീവിച്ചവൻ, ദുഷ്കൃത്യങ്ങളിൽ നിരതൻ, വൃഷലീയുടെ സഹവാസത്തിൽ കാമലാലസൻ. ഒരിക്കൽ ജാരത്വത്തിൽ പതിച്ച്, രാത്രിയിൽ ഒരു ശൂദ്രനാൽ വധിക്കപ്പെട്ടു.

Word by Word

• चौर्यवृत्तिः: one whose livelihood is theft; thief by profession
• चौर्यवृत्तिः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: चौर्य (प्रातिपदिक) + वृत्ति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (चौर्यस्य वृत्तिः)

• नैष्कृतिकः: a wicked/evil-doer; criminal
• नैष्कृतिकः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नैष्कृतिक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• वृषलीरतिलालसः: lustful for intercourse with a low-caste woman
• वृषलीरतिलालसः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वृषली (प्रातिपदिक) + रति (प्रातिपदिक) + लालस (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (वृषल्याः रतौ लालसः)

• कदाचित्: once; at some time
• कदाचित्: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: कदाचित् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (temporal adverb)

• जारताम्: adultery; the state of being a paramour
• जारताम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जारता (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• प्राप्तः: having attained; having fallen into
• प्राप्तः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र + आप् (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (past passive participle); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• शूद्रेण: by a Śūdra
• शूद्रेण: Karana/Agent-Instrument (करण/कर्तृकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शूद्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन

• निहतः: killed; slain
• निहतः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: नि + हन् (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (past passive participle); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• निशि: at night
• निशि: Adhikarana (Location/Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: निशा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन

Speaker

Vāmadeva

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A nocturnal alley or village edge: a thief-adulterer caught in wrongdoing, struck down in the dark; the atmosphere is grim, moralizing, and cautionary.

Characters & Entities

• Śūdra

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Persistent adharma—stealing, cruelty, and sexual misconduct—ripens into suffering and violent consequences.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No tīrtha is mentioned; the verse narrates moral decline to contrast with later redemption.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it is descriptive narrative emphasizing ethical causality (karma-phala).