Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 31

Devanagari script

तेनैकं वदनं मुक्त्वा तस्या वस्त्रावगुंठितम् । वीक्षिताऽतिस्मरार्तेन यथा कश्चिन्न बुद्ध्यते

Transliteration

tenaikaṃ vadanaṃ muktvā tasyā vastrāvaguṃṭhitam | vīkṣitā'tismarārtena yathā kaścinna buddhyate

Translation

ആ ഉദ്ദേശത്തോടെ അവളുടെ വസ്ത്രാവഗുണ്ഠിതമായ ദേഹം മറച്ചുതന്നെ വെച്ച്, മുഖം മാത്രം തുറന്നുവിട്ടു; അതിസ്മരാർത്തനായ അവൻ അവളെ അങ്ങനെ നോക്കി—ആർക്കും ബുദ്ധി നിലനിൽക്കാത്തതുപോലെ.

Word by Word

• tena: by that/therefore
• tena: Karaṇa/Hetu (Instrument/Cause)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, पुं/नपुंसक, तृतीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• ekam: one
• ekam: Karma (Object qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: eka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण (of vadanam)

• vadanam: face
• vadanam: Karma (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vadana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• muktvā: having let (it) go
• muktvā: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Prior action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: muc (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (Gerund), ‘having released/letting go’

• tasyāḥ: of her
• tasyāḥ: Sambandha (Genitive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• vastra-avaguṃṭhitam: covered/veiled with cloth
• vastra-avaguṃṭhitam: Karma (Object qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vastra (प्रातिपदिक) + avaguṃṭhita (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुषसमास; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past participle) नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण (of vadanam)

• vīkṣitā: was looked at
• vīkṣitā: Kriyā (Participial predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vīkṣ (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle); स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; (understood: ‘she/it was looked at’)

• ati-smara-ārtena: by one extremely afflicted by passion
• ati-smara-ārtena: Karaṇa/Hetu (Instrument/Cause)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ati (अव्यय) + smara (प्रातिपदिक) + ārta (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुषसमास; पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; करण/हेतु (agent/cause)

• yathā: as
• yathā: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Manner)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, उपमान/प्रकारवाचक (as/just as)

• kaścit: someone
• kaścit: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kaścid (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• na: not
• na: Pratiṣedha (Negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, निषेध निपात (negation)

• buddhyate: understands/realizes
• buddhyate: Kriyā (Main verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: budh (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, आत्मनेपद; कर्मणि/भावे प्रयोग (is understood/comes to mind)

Speaker

Narrator (Purāṇic narrator; specific speaker not stated in snippet)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Satī remains mostly veiled; only her face is left uncovered. Brahmā, overwhelmed by passion, stares with a fixed, unthinking gaze; the contrast between veil (modesty) and gaze (transgression) dominates the scene.

Characters & Entities

• Smara (Kāma)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Intense kāma overwhelms buddhi (discernment); spiritual life requires guarding the mind and senses.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Not stated in the verse; it forms part of a broader Tīrthamāhātmya narrative context.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None directly; the verse is descriptive, illustrating the mental consequences of desire.