Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 106

Devanagari script

ततोऽसौ दंशमशकान् पिपीलिकसमुद्भवान् । यूकामत्कुणकाढ्यांश्च गत्वा पक्षित्वमागतः

Transliteration

tato'sau daṃśamaśakān pipīlikasamudbhavān | yūkāmatkuṇakāḍhyāṃśca gatvā pakṣitvamāgataḥ

Translation

ततः स पिपीलिकासमुद्भवान् दंशमशकान् भूत्वा, यूकामत्कुणकाढ्यश्च सन्, अन्ते पक्षित्वमागतः।

Word by Word

• ततः: then
• ततः: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Temporal/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; काल/क्रमवाचक (adverb: 'then/from there')

• असौ: that one/he
• असौ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: असद्/अदस् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन (Nominative singular)

• दंश-मशकान्: gnats and mosquitoes
• दंश-मशकान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दंश (प्रातिपदिक) + मशक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (2nd), बहुवचन (Accusative plural); इतरेतर-द्वन्द्वः (gnats and mosquitoes)

• पिपीलिका-समुद्भवान्: arising from ants
• पिपीलिका-समुद्भवान्: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjective to object/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पिपीलिका (प्रातिपदिक) + समुद्भव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया बहुवचन (Accusative plural); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (पिपीलिकायाः समुद्भवाः) — qualifying दंशमशकान्

• यूका-मात्कुणक-आढ्यान्: (forms) abounding in lice and bugs
• यूका-मात्कुणक-आढ्यान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: यूका (प्रातिपदिक) + मात्कुणक (प्रातिपदिक) + आढ्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया बहुवचन (Accusative plural); समाहार/इतरेतर-द्वन्द्व-प्रायः (yūkā and mātkuṇaka) + आढ्य (abounding in) — 'full of lice and bugs'

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

• गत्वा: having gone (through)
• गत्वा: Pūrvakāla-kriyā (Prior action/पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: गम् (धातु) + त्वा (क्त्वा-प्रत्यय)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund/absolutive) — 'having gone/after going'

• पक्षित्वम्: birdhood
• पक्षित्वम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पक्षि (प्रातिपदिक) + त्व (भावप्रत्यय)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन (Accusative singular) — 'state of being a bird'

• आगतः: attained/arrived at
• आगतः: Kriyā (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: आ + गम् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past participle used predicatively); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा एकवचन

Speaker

Narrator

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā (Narmadā) tīrtha-maṇḍala (contextual)

Type: river

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A sequence montage: the sinner’s jīva passes through swarms of biting insects, ant-hills, and parasitic infestations, then briefly appears as a bird—freedom tinged with karmic residue.

Characters & Entities

• Daṃśa
• Maśaka
• Pipīlikā (ants)
• Yūkā (lice)
• Matkuṇa (bedbugs)
• Pakṣi (birds)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The Purāṇas portray karma as shaping embodiment itself, with repeated lower births reflecting accumulated impurity and harm.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No tīrtha is mentioned in this verse.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it is descriptive of successive births.