Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 46

Devanagari script

ततो नन्दिमहाकालौ स्तम्भहस्तौ भयानकौ । जघ्नतुर्दानवं तत्र मुद्गरादिभिरायुधैः

Transliteration

tato nandimahākālau stambhahastau bhayānakau | jaghnaturdānavaṃ tatra mudgarādibhirāyudhaiḥ

Translation

แล้วนันทิและมหากาล—น่าเกรงขาม ถือเสาไว้ในมือ—ได้ฟาดฟันอสูรทานวะ ณ ที่นั้น ด้วยอาวุธเช่นกระบองและอื่นๆ จนล้มลง

Word by Word

• ततः: then
• ततः: Kriya-vishesana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, तसिल्-प्रत्ययान्त (adverb ‘then/from there’)

• नन्दिमहाकालौ: Nandi and Mahākāla
• नन्दिमहाकालौ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नन्दि (प्रातिपदिक) + महाकाल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: द्वन्द्व-समास (नन्दि + महाकाल); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति, द्विवचन (Nominative dual)

• स्तम्भहस्तौ: with clubs in their hands
• स्तम्भहस्तौ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स्तम्भ (प्रातिपदिक) + हस्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (स्तम्भ-हस्त ‘having a club/pillar in hand’); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति, द्विवचन; कर्तृ-विशेषण

• भयानकौ: terrifying
• भयानकौ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: भयानक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति, द्विवचन (Nominative dual); कर्तृ-विशेषण

• जघ्नतुः: they struck/killed
• जघ्नतुः: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: हन् (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, द्विवचन (3rd person dual)

• दानवम्: the demon
• दानवम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दानव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन (Accusative singular)

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय (adverb ‘there’)

• मुद्गरादिभिः: with maces and the like
• मुद्गरादिभिः: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मुद्गर (प्रातिपदिक) + आदि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (मुद्गर-आदि ‘mace and the like’); पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया विभक्ति, बहुवचन (Instrumental plural)

• आयुधैः: with weapons
• आयुधैः: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: आयुध (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया विभक्ति, बहुवचन (Instrumental plural)

Speaker

Narrator (contextual Purāṇic narration)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Mahākāla (as protective presence, implied)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Nandī and Mahākāla, towering and terrifying, wielding pillar-like weapons, striking a dānava amid dust and shattered ground; dynamic motion and ferocity.

Characters & Entities

• Nandī
• Mahākāla
• Dānava

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Divine guardianship manifests powerfully to subdue adharma; the Lord’s attendants protect cosmic order.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Mahākāla evokes the Āvantya/Ujjayinī sacred sphere, central to the Āvantya Khaṇḍa’s tīrtha-glorification, though the verse itself is a battle description.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; the verse focuses on the protective, martial intervention of Nandī and Mahākāla.