Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 48

Devanagari script

केचिल्लुञ्चितमूर्धानो जाल्मा भूत्वा वनेऽवसन् । दयाधर्मं ब्रुवाणाश्च निर्ग्रंथव्रतमास्थिताः

Transliteration

kecilluñcitamūrdhāno jālmā bhūtvā vane'vasan | dayādharmaṃ bruvāṇāśca nirgraṃthavratamāsthitāḥ

Translation

บางพวกถูกโกนศีรษะ กลายเป็นคนอเนจอนาถ แล้วไปอาศัยอยู่ในป่า กล่าวคำว่า ‘เมตตา’ และ ‘ธรรม’ อยู่เสมอ แต่กลับถือพรตแบบพวกนิรครันถะ

Word by Word

• केचित्: some
• केचित्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: किम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), बहुवचन; अनिश्चितवाचक

• लुञ्चित-मूर्धानः: with plucked heads (hair torn out)
• लुञ्चित-मूर्धानः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: लुञ्चित (कृदन्त; √लुञ्च्) + मूर्धन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषणम् (to केचित्); समासः—तत्पुरुषः (लुञ्चितः मूर्धा येषाम्)

• जाल्माः: wretches / rogues
• जाल्माः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जाल्म (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• भूत्वा: having become
• भूत्वा: Kriya-visheshana (Gerundial/पूर्वक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √भू (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund); पूर्वकाल (having become)

• वने: in the forest
• वने: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, सप्तमी (7th/अधिकरण), एकवचन

• अवसन्: dwelt
• अवसन्: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: अव√वस् (धातु)
• Form: लङ् (Imperfect/Past), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), बहुवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• दया-धर्मम्: the duty of compassion
• दया-धर्मम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दया (प्रातिपदिक) + धर्म (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (दयायाः धर्मः)

• ब्रुवाणाः: speaking
• ब्रुवाणाः: Karta (Agent-participle/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √ब्रू (धातु)
• Form: वर्तमानकाले शानच्-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (present middle participle); पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय (conjunction)

• निर्ग्रन्थ-व्रतम्: the vow of a nirgrantha (ascetic)
• निर्ग्रन्थ-व्रतम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: निर्ग्रन्थ (प्रातिपदिक) + व्रत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (निर्ग्रन्थानां व्रतम् / निर्ग्रन्थवत् व्रतम्)

• आस्थिताः: having undertaken / adopted
• आस्थिताः: Kriya (Predicate-participle/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: आ√स्था (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकृदन्त (past active participle); पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

Speaker

Narrator (Purāṇic narration within Prabhāsakṣetramāhātmya; speaker not explicit in the snippet)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Defeated daityas with shorn heads, ragged and wretched, living in a forest hermitage; they preach compassion and dharma while adopting nirgrantha-like austerity, creating a tension between serene setting and moral dissonance.

Characters & Entities

• Forest-dwellers
• Nirgrantha-vrata

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Outer renunciation and moral speech are not equal to inner purity; dharma is measured by conduct, not costume.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa-kṣetra, where the aftermath of the divine victory is narrated within its māhātmya.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

A ‘vrata’ (nirgrantha-vrata) is mentioned descriptively, not prescribed as an ideal practice here.