Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 39

Devanagari script

इत्याकर्ण्य वचो दिव्यं कंसः खङ्गं प्रगृह्य च । स्वसारं हंतुमुद्योगं चकार द्विजपुंगवाः

Transliteration

ityākarṇya vaco divyaṃ kaṃsaḥ khaṅgaṃ pragṛhya ca | svasāraṃ haṃtumudyogaṃ cakāra dvijapuṃgavāḥ

Translation

ആ ദിവ്യവചനം കേട്ട് കംസൻ ഖഡ്ഗം കൈയിലെടുത്തു; ഹേ ദ്വിജശ്രേഷ്ഠന്മാരേ, സ്വന്തം സഹോദരിയെ വധിക്കുവാൻ ശ്രമം തുടങ്ങി।

Word by Word

• iti: thus
• iti: Sambandha (Discourse marker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; इति-शब्दः (quotative particle)

• ākarṇya: having heard
• ākarṇya: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial to main verb/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ā-√karṇ (धातु) + ल्यप् (कृदन्त)
• Form: क्त्वान्त/ल्यपन्त अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund); ‘आकर्ण्य’ = having heard

• vacaḥ: speech, words
• vacaḥ: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vacas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया/प्रथमा? एकवचन; अत्र द्वितीया एकवचन (object of ‘ākarṇya’)

• divyam: divine
• divyam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: divya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया एकवचन; ‘vacaḥ’ विशेषण

• kaṃsaḥ: Kaṃsa
• kaṃsaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kaṃsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा एकवचन

• khaṅgam: sword
• khaṅgam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: khaṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया एकवचन

• pragṛhya: having seized
• pragṛhya: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra-√grah (धातु) + ल्यप् (कृदन्त)
• Form: क्त्वान्त/ल्यपन्त अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund); ‘प्रगृह्य’ = having seized

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयार्थक निपात (conjunction)

• svasāram: (his) sister
• svasāram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: svasṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; द्वितीया एकवचन

• hantum: to kill
• hantum: Prayojana (Purpose/प्रयोजन)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √han (धातु) + तुमुन् (कृदन्त)
• Form: तुमन्त (infinitive); ‘हन्तुम्’ = to kill

• udyogam: effort, attempt
• udyogam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: udyoga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया एकवचन

• cakāra: did, made
• cakāra: Kriyā (Main action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kṛ (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (परस्मैपद); प्रथमपुरुष; एकवचन

• dvijapuṃgavāḥ: best of the twice-born (Brahmins)
• dvijapuṃgavāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvija (प्रातिपदिक) + puṃgava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (dvijānāṃ puṃgavāḥ)

Speaker

Sūta

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Kaṃsa, eyes blazing, grips a raised sword as Devakī recoils; Vasudeva stands between them, palms lifted in urgent appeal; attendants freeze in shock within a royal corridor.

Characters & Entities

• Kaṃsa
• Devakī (as sister, implied)
• Sūta
• Dvija-puṅgava (addressed audience)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Fear and ambition can eclipse basic family-dharma; Purāṇas condemn such adharma as the seed of inevitable ruin.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No tīrtha is mentioned; the verse advances the moral narrative.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it depicts an unethical reaction to prophecy.