Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 17
स्त्रीपुंसोश्च द्विधा त्वं च पशुपक्ष्यादिमानवैः । चतुर्विधं कुलं त्वं हि चतुराशीतिलक्षणः
strīpuṃsośca dvidhā tvaṃ ca paśupakṣyādimānavaiḥ | caturvidhaṃ kulaṃ tvaṃ hi caturāśītilakṣaṇaḥ
നീ സ്ത്രീയും പുരുഷനും എന്ന ദ്വിരൂപത്തിലും നിലകൊള്ളുന്നു. പശു, പക്ഷി മുതലായവയും മനുഷ്യരും മുഖേന നീയേ ജീവസമൂഹത്തിന്റെ ചതുര്വിധ സമാഹാരം. സത്യത്തിൽ ചൗരാശി ലക്ഷം യോനികളുടെ ലക്ഷണസ്വരൂപം നീയേ.
The Devas (Gods)
Listener: Sages / internal addressee: King (nṛpa) in the narrative frame
Scene: A mandala-like composition: central Hari radiating into paired male/female figures, then concentric rings of animals, birds, and humans—suggesting 84-lakh species as innumerable forms, all connected by a single luminous thread.
FAQs
It refers to the four classifications of birth in Hindu cosmology: Jarāyuja (womb-born), Aṇḍaja (egg-born), Svedaja (moisture/sweat-born), and Udbhijja (sprout/vegetation-born).
The verse explicitly identifies the Goddess as the essence of the 'caturāśītilakṣaṇaḥ' or the 8.4 million species of life, indicating that all biological diversity is a manifestation of Her divine energy.
It highlights the non-dual nature of the Divine Mother, asserting that She transcends and yet encompasses the duality of gender (male and female) necessary for creation.