Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 20

Devanagari script

विधवां तां सुतां दृष्ट्वा राजा शोकसमन्वितः । उवाच वचनं तत्र स्वभार्यां दुःखपीडिताम्

Transliteration

vidhavāṃ tāṃ sutāṃ dṛṣṭvā rājā śokasamanvitaḥ | uvāca vacanaṃ tatra svabhāryāṃ duḥkhapīḍitām

Translation

ครั้นทอดพระเนตรเห็นพระธิดาเป็นหม้าย พระราชาทรงถูกความโศกครอบงำ แล้วตรัสถ้อยคำแก่พระมเหสีผู้ถูกทุกข์บีบคั้น ณ ที่นั้น

Word by Word

• विधवाम्: widowed
• विधवाम्: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: विधवा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण (object-qualifier)

• ताम्: her
• ताम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• सुताम्: daughter
• सुताम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सुता (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• दृष्ट्वा: having seen
• दृष्ट्वा: Pūrvakāla-kriyā (Absolutive)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √दृश् (दृशिर्)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्यय (gerund/absolutive); पूर्वकालिक क्रिया (having seen)

• राजा: the king
• राजा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: राजन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• शोक: grief
• शोक: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शोक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; समासपूर्वपद

• समन्वितः: filled with
• समन्वितः: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: समन्वित (कृदन्त; सम् + अनु + √इ (इण्) + क्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण

• उवाच: said
• उवाच: Kriyā (Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √वच् (वचँ)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (perfect); प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• वचनम्: words/speech
• वचनम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वचन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikaraṇa (Location)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (adverb of place)

• स्व: his own
• स्व: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समासपूर्वपद; स्वकीयवाचक (own)

• भार्याम्: wife
• भार्याम्: Sampradāna/Karma (Recipient as object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भार्या (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; स्वभार्याम् इति समासार्थे

• दुःख: sorrow
• दुःख: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दुःख (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; समासपूर्वपद

• पीडिताम्: afflicted
• पीडिताम्: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पीडित (कृदन्त; √पीड् (पीडँ) + क्त)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण (to wife)

Speaker

Narrator (Purāṇic narrator in Revā Khaṇḍa context; exact speaker not explicit in this snippet)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Revā (Narmadā)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: The king beholds his daughter as a widow; the queen is crushed by sorrow. The king begins to speak—an intimate interior scene of grief and impending counsel.

Characters & Entities

• King
• Bhāryā (Queen)
• Widowed daughter (Bhānumatī in subsequent verses)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Dharma is tested in sorrow; rulers and households must respond to crisis with discernment, protection, and righteous counsel.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No tīrtha is named in this verse; it forms part of the Revā Khaṇḍa’s broader sacred-geography narrative setting.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None directly; the verse sets the emotional and ethical context for ensuing decisions.