Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 40

Devanagari script

न हंतव्यो न हंतव्य इति सा शक्रमब्रवीत् । वज्रेण कृत्त्यमानानां बुद्धा सा रोदनेन च

Transliteration

na haṃtavyo na haṃtavya iti sā śakramabravīt | vajreṇa kṛttyamānānāṃ buddhā sā rodanena ca

Translation

Dia berkata kepada Śakra, "Jangan bunuh—jangan bunuh!" Menyedari mereka sedang dipotong oleh vajra, dia memahaminya juga melalui tangisan mereka.

Word by Word

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (Negation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्यय (negative particle)

• haṃtavyaḥ: to be killed
• haṃtavyaḥ: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: han (हन् धातु) + tavya (तव्य-कृत्प्रत्यय)
• Form: तव्यत्-कृदन्त (gerundive/future passive participle), पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; विधेय-विशेषण (predicate adjective)

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (Negation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्यय (negative particle)

• haṃtavyaḥ: to be killed
• haṃtavyaḥ: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: han (हन् धातु) + tavya (तव्य-कृत्प्रत्यय)
• Form: तव्यत्-कृदन्त (gerundive), पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; पुनरुक्ति-बल (emphatic repetition)

• iti: thus
• iti: Sambandha (Quotation marker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (अव्यय)
• Form: उक्त्यर्थक-अव्यय (quotative particle)

• sā: she
• sā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (तद् सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• śakram: Śakra (Indra)
• śakram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śakra (शक्र प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• abravīt: said
• abravīt: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: brū (ब्रू धातु)
• Form: लङ्-लकार (imperfect/past), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• vajreṇa: with the thunderbolt
• vajreṇa: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vajra (वज्र प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन; करण-कारक

• kṛttyamānānām: of those being cut
• kṛttyamānānām: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kṛt (कृत्/कर्त् धातु; here ‘to cut’ sense) + yamāna (यमान/मान-कृत्प्रत्यय, कर्मणि वर्तमानकाले)
• Form: वर्तमानकाले कर्मणि कृदन्त (present passive participle), बहुवचन, षष्ठी (6th); विशेषण (of those being cut)

• buddhā: having understood
• buddhā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: budh (बुध् धातु) + ta (क्त-कृत्प्रत्यय)
• Form: क्त-कृदन्त (past passive participle), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; भाव-विशेषण (having realized/understood)

• sā: she
• sā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (तद् सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; सर्वनाम (पुनरुक्त-कर्ता)

• rodanena: by weeping
• rodanena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rodana (रोदन प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन; करण-कारक

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

Speaker

Diti

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Diti, anguished, implores Indra to stop as the vajra’s force divides the unborn; the cries of the nascent Maruts fill the air; Indra stands tense, vajra raised, caught between fear and remorse.

Characters & Entities

• Diti
• Indra (Śakra)
• Vajra
• Crying (rodhana)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Compassion protests violence; dharma is tested when power confronts vulnerability.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No tīrtha is newly praised in this verse; it remains within the ongoing Puṣkara-linked narrative.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; the verse is a moral appeal against killing (ahiṃsā sentiment).