Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 88

Devanagari script

एतल्लिंगं त्वया विष्णो धृतं वै पिण्डिरूपिणा । महाविष्णुस्वरूपेण घातितौ मधुकैटभौ

Transliteration

etalliṃgaṃ tvayā viṣṇo dhṛtaṃ vai piṇḍirūpiṇā | mahāviṣṇusvarūpeṇa ghātitau madhukaiṭabhau

Translation

ഹേ വിഷ്ണോ! ഈ ലിംഗം നീ പിണ്ഡ-രൂപം ധരിച്ചു വഹിച്ചിരുന്നു; മഹാവിഷ്ണു-സ്വരൂപത്തിൽ മധുവിനെയും കൈടഭനെയും വധിക്കുകയും ചെയ്തു।

Word by Word

• etat: this
• etat: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: etad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; सर्वनाम; विशेषण

• liṅgam: liṅga/emblem
• liṅgam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: liṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• tvayā: by you
• tvayā: Kartr̥ (Agent/कर्ता-करणभाव)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yuṣmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तृतीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• viṣṇo: O Vishnu
• viṣṇo: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viṣṇu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• dhṛtam: held/born
• dhṛtam: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dhṛ (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past participle); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्मणि प्रयोगः

• vai: indeed
• vai: Sambandha (Relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vai (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपातः (indeed/emphatic)

• piṇḍi-rūpiṇā: in a lump/rounded form
• piṇḍi-rūpiṇā: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: piṇḍi (प्रातिपदिक) + rūpin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (piṇḍyā rūpaṃ yasya)

• mahā-viṣṇu-svarūpeṇa: by the form of Mahāviṣṇu
• mahā-viṣṇu-svarūpeṇa: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + viṣṇu (प्रातिपदिक) + sva-rūpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (mahāviṣṇoḥ svarūpeṇa)

• ghātitau: were slain
• ghātitau: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ghāt (धातु, causative of √han)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past participle); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, द्विवचन

• madhu-kaiṭabhau: Madhu and Kaiṭabha
• madhu-kaiṭabhau: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: madhu (प्रातिपदिक) + kaiṭabha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, द्विवचन; समासः—द्वन्द्वः (madhuś ca kaiṭabhaś ca)

Speaker

Devas

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kedāra-liṅga (referenced)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: General audience; within story, Viṣṇu is praised by devas

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Devas praise Viṣṇu: he bore the liṅga in compact embodied form and, as Mahāviṣṇu, slew Madhu and Kaiṭabha—depict a split narrative: stuti in Vaikuṇṭha and a cosmic flashback battle over primordial waters.

Characters & Entities

• Viṣṇu
• Liṅga
• Mahāviṣṇu
• Madhu
• Kaiṭabha

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The verse celebrates divine protection: the Supreme assumes forms to uphold dharma and remove chaos.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kedāra-kṣetra is the narrative setting; the mention of “this Liṅga” links devotion to a localized sacred emblem within Kedārakhaṇḍa traditions.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None directly; it functions as praise recalling salvific deeds of the Lord.