Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 45

Devanagari script

कोऽयं तवानुगो रौद्रो दृश्यते चांत्यजाकृतिः । एतत्सर्वं समाचक्ष्व पृच्छतो मम सन्मुने

Transliteration

ko'yaṃ tavānugo raudro dṛśyate cāṃtyajākṛtiḥ | etatsarvaṃ samācakṣva pṛcchato mama sanmune

Translation

“ਇਹ ਕੌਣ ਹੈ ਤੇਰਾ ਅਨੁਚਰ, ਜੋ ਭਿਆਨਕ ਦਿਸਦਾ ਹੈ ਅਤੇ ਅੰਤਯਜ ਦੀ ਆਕ੍ਰਿਤੀ ਧਾਰੇ ਹੋਏ ਹੈ? ਹੇ ਸੱਜਣ ਮੁਨੀ, ਮੈਂ ਪੁੱਛਦਾ ਹਾਂ—ਇਹ ਸਭ ਮੈਨੂੰ ਸਪਸ਼ਟ ਕਰ।”

Word by Word

• कः: who
• कः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: क (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• अयम्: this (person)
• अयम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• तव: your
• तव: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: युष्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• अनुगः: follower, attendant
• अनुगः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अनुग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• रौद्रः: fierce, terrible
• रौद्रः: Visheshana (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: रौद्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; विशेषण (अनुगः इति)

• दृश्यते: is seen, appears
• दृश्यते: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दृश् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; आत्मनेपद; कर्मणि प्रयोग (passive)

• च: and
• च: Samuccaya (Connector/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• अन्त्यज-आकृतिः: one having the form/appearance of an outcaste
• अन्त्यज-आकृतिः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अन्त्यज (प्रातिपदिक) + आकृति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (अन्त्यजस्य आकृतिः)

• एतत्: this
• एतत्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• सर्वम्: all, entire
• सर्वम्: Visheshana (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; विशेषण (एतत् इति)

• समाचक्ष्व: tell, explain
• समाचक्ष्व: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: आ-चक्ष् (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (Imperative), मध्यमपुरुष (2nd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• पृच्छतः: of (me) who is asking
• पृच्छतः: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Kridanta
• Root: प्रच्छ् (धातु)
• Form: शतृ-प्रत्यय (Present active participle), पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन; ‘पृच्छत्’

• मम: my
• मम: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• सत्-मुने: O good sage
• सत्-मुने: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सत् (प्रातिपदिक) + मुनि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative), एकवचन; कर्मधारय (सन् मुनिः)

Speaker

Mārkaṇḍa

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A questioning interlocutor addresses a serene sage; behind the sage stands a fierce-looking attendant with caṇḍāla markers—darkened ash-smears, rough garments, intense gaze—creating a contrast of sanctity and liminality.

Characters & Entities

• Mārkaṇḍa
• Viśvāmitra
• Triśaṅku (implied as follower)
• Antyaja (outcaste form)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Purāṇic narratives often use startling conditions (like an outcaste form) to explore karma, purification, and the possibility of uplift through dharma and sacred refuge.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The immediate narrative frame remains the Arbuda/Acaleśvara sanctuary, though the verse itself centers on identifying the companion.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly; the focus is on inquiry that sets up an explanation of the companion’s condition and its remedy.