Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 18

Devanagari script

अनभ्यागमनाद्भर्तुः सा नारी पुत्रवर्जिता । सदा शोकेन संतप्ता कालेन निधनं गता

Transliteration

anabhyāgamanādbhartuḥ sā nārī putravarjitā | sadā śokena saṃtaptā kālena nidhanaṃ gatā

Translation

ਪਤੀ ਦੇ ਨਾ ਲੌਟਣ ਕਰਕੇ ਉਹ ਇਸਤ੍ਰੀ ਪੁੱਤਰ-ਵਿਹੂਣੀ ਰਹੀ; ਸਦਾ ਵਿਛੋੜੇ ਦੇ ਸ਼ੋਕ ਨਾਲ ਸੜਦੀ ਰਹੀ ਅਤੇ ਸਮੇਂ ਦੇ ਨਾਲ ਮ੍ਰਿਤ੍ਯੁ ਨੂੰ ਪ੍ਰਾਪਤ ਹੋਈ।

Word by Word

• anabhyāgamanāt: from (his) non-return / from not coming back
• anabhyāgamanāt: Apadana (Cause/Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: an-abhyāgamana (प्रातिपदिक; √gam उपसर्गाभ्यां abhi+ā)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी/अपादान (5th case), एकवचन; नञ्-तत्पुरुषः (अन- + अभ्यागमन)

• bhartuḥ: of the husband
• bhartuḥ: Shashthi-Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhartṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी/सम्बन्ध (6th case), एकवचन

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

• nārī: woman
• nārī: Karta (Apposition/कर्ता-विशेष्य)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nārī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st case), एकवचन

• putra-varjitā: deprived of a son / childless
• putra-varjitā: Visheshana (Adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: putra (प्रातिपदिक) + varjita (कृदन्त; √vṛj/varj (धातु) क्त-प्रत्यय)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st case), एकवचन; तृतीया-तत्पुरुषार्थे (पुत्रेण वर्जिता/पुत्र-रहित)

• sadā: always
• sadā: Kriyavisheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sadā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (adverb of time)

• śokena: with grief / by sorrow
• śokena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śoka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया/करण (3rd case), एकवचन

• saṃtaptā: afflicted / tormented
• saṃtaptā: Visheshana (Adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: saṃtapta (कृदन्त; √tap (धातु) क्त-प्रत्यय, उपसर्ग saṃ-)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st case), एकवचन; भूतकर्मणि क्त-प्रत्यय (past passive participle)

• kālena: in due course / by time
• kālena: Karana (Instrument/Time-agent/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया/करण (3rd case), एकवचन

• nidhanaṃ: death
• nidhanaṃ: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nidhana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया/कर्म (2nd case), एकवचन

• gatā: went/attained (i.e., met)
• gatā: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: gata (कृदन्त; √gam (धातु) क्त-प्रत्यय)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st case), एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्यय (past participle) प्रयुक्तः—‘गता’ = ‘प्राप्तवती/गतवती’ (finite sense)

Speaker

Unclear from excerpt (narrative voice within Brahmottarakhaṇḍa)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A lone woman sits near a dim household threshold, hair loosened, eyes downcast; the passage of time is suggested by fading lamps and changing seasons, conveying childlessness and grief.

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

It underscores how separation and unresolved worldly attachments can consume a life, while Time (kāla) inevitably brings closure.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific tīrtha or sacred geography is mentioned in this verse.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; the verse is purely narrative and moral in tone.