Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 40

Devanagari script

मांसपिंडमयो रौद्रः सर्वरोगविवर्जितः । अशक्तश्च तथा गन्तुं पदमात्रमपि क्वचित्

Transliteration

māṃsapiṃḍamayo raudraḥ sarvarogavivarjitaḥ | aśaktaśca tathā gantuṃ padamātramapi kvacit

Translation

เขาปรากฏดุร้ายดั่งก้อนเนื้อเพียงก้อนเดียว ปราศจากโรคทั้งปวง; ทว่าไร้เรี่ยวแรง ไม่อาจก้าวไปได้แม้เพียงก้าวเดียว ณ ที่ใดก็ตาม.

Word by Word

• māṃsa-piṇḍa-mayaḥ: made of a lump of flesh
• māṃsa-piṇḍa-mayaḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: māṃsa (प्रातिपदिक) + piṇḍa (प्रातिपदिक) + maya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष (मांसपिण्डेन मयः/निर्मितः) विशेषण

• raudraḥ: fierce
• raudraḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: raudra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; विशेषण

• sarva-roga-vivarjitaḥ: free from all diseases
• sarva-roga-vivarjitaḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक) + roga (प्रातिपदिक) + vivarjita (प्रातिपदिक/कृदन्ताधारित)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष (सर्वैः रोगैः विवर्जितः = free from all diseases) विशेषण

• aśaktaḥ: unable
• aśaktaḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a-śakta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; नञ्-समास/निषेध (अशक्त = unable)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• tathā: likewise
• tathā: Sambandha (Adverbial/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रकारवाचक-अव्यय (adverb: likewise/so)

• gantum: to go
• gantum: Prayojana (Purpose/प्रयोजन)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: gam (गम् धातु)
• Form: तुमुन्-प्रत्ययान्त (infinitive)

• pada-mātram: even a single step
• pada-mātram: Karma (Extent/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pada (प्रातिपदिक) + mātra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष (पदस्य मात्रम् = only a step)

• api: even
• api: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: अपि-कारार्थक-अव्यय (particle: even)

• kvacit: anywhere
• kvacit: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kvacit (अव्यय)
• Form: देश/कालवाचक-अव्यय (indefinite adverb: anywhere/ever)

Speaker

Narrative voice (within Sūta’s narration)

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Śaunaka and the Naimiṣāraṇya sages

Visual Art Cues

Scene: The wingless bird-lord now shown as a grotesque, trunk-like mass—alive, fierce-faced, but unable to move; attendants/other creatures recoil; Śāṇḍilī remains silent, emphasizing the contrast between inner heat (krodha) and outward stillness (mauna).

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Strength and mobility are not merely physical; dharma sustains true power, and its loss can render one helpless despite bodily soundness.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

This line continues the story within the Nāgarakhaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya; it does not specify a tīrtha by name.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None.