Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 23

Devanagari script

कौटिल्यकोटिनाशी च यत्र रामः प्रकुप्यते । तत्र सर्वे प्रणश्यंति किं तत्कुमारपालकः

Transliteration

kauṭilyakoṭināśī ca yatra rāmaḥ prakupyate | tatra sarve praṇaśyaṃti kiṃ tatkumārapālakaḥ

Translation

എവിടെ ശ്രീരാമൻ ക്രുദ്ധനാകുന്നുവോ, അവിടെ കപടനീതിയുടെ കോടിക്കണക്കിന് ഉപായങ്ങളെയും അവൻ നശിപ്പിക്കുന്നു. അവിടെ എല്ലാവരും നശിക്കും—അപ്പോൾ ആ കുമാരപാലകൻ എന്തു ചെയ്യുമെന്നു?

Word by Word

• kauṭilya-koṭi-nāśī: destroyer of countless crookedness
• kauṭilya-koṭi-nāśī: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kauṭilya (प्रातिपदिक) + koṭi (प्रातिपदिक) + nāśin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa (determinative; 'destroyer of crores of crookedness'), Puṃliṅga (m.), Prathamā vibhakti (Nom./1st), Ekavacana (Sg.); viśeṣaṇa of rāmaḥ

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Samuccaya-avyaya (conjunction)

• yatra: where
• yatra: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yatra (अव्यय)
• Form: Deśa/saṃbandha-avyaya (relative adverb/यत्र)

• rāmaḥ: Rama
• rāmaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rāma (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga (m.), Prathamā vibhakti (Nom./1st), Ekavacana (Sg.)

• prakupyate: becomes angry
• prakupyate: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kup (धातु) with pra-
• Form: Laṭ-lakāra (Present/लट्), Prathama-puruṣa (3rd), Ekavacana (Sg.), Ātmanepada

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: Deśa-avyaya (locative adverb)

• sarve: all (people)
• sarve: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga (m.), Prathamā vibhakti (Nom./1st), Bahuvacana (Pl.)

• praṇaśyanti: perish, are destroyed
• praṇaśyanti: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: naś (धातु) with pra-
• Form: Laṭ-lakāra (Present/लट्), Prathama-puruṣa (3rd), Bahuvacana (Pl.), Parasmaipada

• kim: what (then)?
• kim: Prayojaka/Question particle (Interrogative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (प्रातिपदिक सर्वनाम)
• Form: Napuṃsakaliṅga (n.), Prathamā/Dvitīyā vibhakti (Nom./Acc.), Ekavacana (Sg.); interrogative used rhetorically

• tat-kumāra-pālakaḥ: that guardian of the prince/child
• tat-kumāra-pālakaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (प्रातिपदिक सर्वनाम) + kumāra (प्रातिपदिक) + pālaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa (determinative; 'protector of that prince/child'), Puṃliṅga (m.), Prathamā vibhakti (Nom./1st), Ekavacana (Sg.)

Speaker

Narrator (contextual Purāṇic narrator; specific speaker not explicit in the snippet)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A symbolic tableau: a radiant, stern Rāma (or the force of ‘Rāma-kopa’) stands like a pillar of fire; around him, scrolls of policy, chess-like stratagem pieces, and schemers’ plans crumble; a small ‘kumārapālaka’ figure appears powerless.

Characters & Entities

• Rāma

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

No amount of cunning can overcome dharma; divine righteousness defeats even the most sophisticated worldly strategy.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Dharmāraṇya Māhātmya context remains; this verse emphasizes moral power rather than geography.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None.