Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 41

Devanagari script

उत्तंकोऽपि बिलं प्राप्तः प्रविश्य तमसावृतम् । दण्डकाष्ठं समादाय कुपितोह्यखनत्तदा

Transliteration

uttaṃko'pi bilaṃ prāptaḥ praviśya tamasāvṛtam | daṇḍakāṣṭhaṃ samādāya kupitohyakhanattadā

Translation

उत्तंकही त्या गुहेत पोहोचला; अंधाराने वेढलेल्या आत शिरून, लाकडी दंड घेऊन क्रोधाने तत्काळ खोदू लागला।

Word by Word

• uttaṃkaḥ: Uttaṅka
• uttaṃkaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: uttaṃka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• api: also
• api: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (निपात) — 'also/even'

• bilam: the cave; hole
• bilam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bila (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• prāptaḥ: having reached
• prāptaḥ: Karta (Subject qualifier/कर्तृविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: prāpta (प्रातिपदिक; pra√āp, क्त)
• Form: कृदन्त (क्त-प्रत्यय, PPP), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — विधेयविशेषणम् (predicate adjective: 'having reached')

• praviśya: having entered
• praviśya: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra√viś (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund) — 'प्रविश्य' = having entered

• tamasā: with darkness
• tamasā: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tamas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन — 'तमसा' (with darkness)

• āvṛtam: covered; enveloped
• āvṛtam: Karma (Object qualifier/कर्मविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: āvṛta (प्रातिपदिक; ā√vṛ, क्त)
• Form: कृदन्त (क्त-प्रत्यय, PPP), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन — विशेषणम् (qualifying 'bilam')

• daṇḍakāṣṭham: a staff (stick of wood)
• daṇḍakāṣṭham: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: daṇḍakāṣṭha (प्रातिपदिक; daṇḍa + kāṣṭha)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• samādāya: having taken up
• samādāya: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-ā√dā (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund) — 'समादाय' = having taken up

• kupitaḥ: angry
• kupitaḥ: Karta (Subject qualifier/कर्तृविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kupita (प्रातिपदिक; √kup, क्त)
• Form: कृदन्त (क्त-प्रत्यय, PPP), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — 'क्रुद्धः'

• hi: indeed; for
• hi: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (निपात) — हेत्वर्थ/निश्चयार्थक

• akhanat: dug
• akhanat: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: khan (धातु)
• Form: लङ्-लकार (Imperfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन — 'अखनत्' (he dug)

• tadā: then
• tadā: Adhikarana (Time/कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tadā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (कालवाचक क्रियाविशेषण)

Speaker

Narrator (contextual; later marked as Vasiṣṭha in this adhyāya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Arbuda-kṣetra (bilā-antarāla)

Type: cave

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Within a pitch-dark cavern, Uttaṅka grips a wooden staff like a pick, face tense with righteous anger, scraping and digging at packed earth and stone; only a faint rim of light outlines his form.

Characters & Entities

• Uttaṅka

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Dharma pursued for the sake of one’s teacher demands courage and relentless effort, even when the path is obscured.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse is part of the Arbuda-khaṇḍa narration; it does not directly extol a named tīrtha in this line.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it describes Uttaṅka’s action of digging as part of his quest.