Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 174

Devanagari script

नारद उवाच । प्रसादं कुरु देवेश युद्धार्थं कौतुकं मम । एकेन ब्राह्मणेनाजौ हन्यंते क्षत्रिया यदा । पित्रा प्रोक्तं च मे पूर्वं तदा युद्धं भविष्यति

Transliteration

nārada uvāca | prasādaṃ kuru deveśa yuddhārthaṃ kautukaṃ mama | ekena brāhmaṇenājau hanyaṃte kṣatriyā yadā | pitrā proktaṃ ca me pūrvaṃ tadā yuddhaṃ bhaviṣyati

Translation

นารทะกล่าวว่า: "โปรดประทานพรแก่ข้าพระองค์เถิด ข้าแต่จอมเทพ ข้าพระองค์มีความสงสัยใคร่รู้เกี่ยวกับการสงคราม เมื่อกษัตริย์ทั้งหลายถูกสังหารโดยพราหมณ์เพียงผู้เดียว ดังที่บิดาของข้าพระองค์ได้ทำนายไว้ สงครามนั้นก็จะบังเกิดขึ้น"

Word by Word

• nāradaḥ: Nārada
• nāradaḥ: Karta (Speaker)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nārada (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriya (Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (धातु: वच्)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• prasādam: grace / favor
• prasādam: Karma (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prasāda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• kuru: do / grant
• kuru: Kriya (Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kṛ (धातु: कृ)
• Form: लोट्-लकार (Imperative), मध्यमपुरुष (2nd), एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• deveśa: O Lord of the gods
• deveśa: Sambodhana (Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक) + īśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समासः (तत्पुरुषः; ‘देवानाम् ईशः’ षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष), पुल्लिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative), एकवचन

• yuddha-artham: for the sake of battle
• yuddha-artham: Prayojana (Purpose)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yuddha (प्रातिपदिक) + artha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समासः (तत्पुरुषः; ‘युद्धस्य अर्थः/प्रयोजनम्’), पुल्लिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; प्रयोजनार्थे

• kautukam: curiosity / wish (for sport)
• kautukam: Karma (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kautuka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• mama: my
• mama: Sambandha (Possessor)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन

• ekena: by one
• ekena: Karana (Instrument/Agent)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: eka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन

• brāhmaṇena: by a brāhmaṇa
• brāhmaṇena: Karana (Instrument/Agent)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brāhmaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन

• ājau: in battle / on the battlefield
• ājau: Adhikarana (Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: āja (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; ‘आजा/अजि’ = रणभूमिः

• hanyante: are slain
• hanyante: Kriya (Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: han (धातु: हन्)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), बहुवचन, आत्मनेपद; कर्मणि-प्रयोगः (passive)

• kṣatriyāḥ: kṣatriyas
• kṣatriyāḥ: Karta (Subject of passive result)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṣatriya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

• yadā: when
• yadā: Kala (Time)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yadā (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (temporal conjunction)

• pitrā: by (my) father
• pitrā: Karana/Karta (Agent in passive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pitṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन

• proktam: was said
• proktam: Kriya (Predicate/Reported)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra+vac (धातु: वच्)
• Form: कृदन्त (क्त-प्रत्यय, past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘said’

• ca: and
• ca: Samuccaya (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• me: to me / of me
• me: Sampradana/Sambandha (Recipient/Possessor)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, चतुर्थी/षष्ठी (4th/6th), एकवचन; enclitic ‘मे’ (to me/of me)

• pūrvam: formerly / earlier
• pūrvam: Kala (Time)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: pūrva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb), ‘पूर्वकाले’ अर्थे

• tadā: then
• tadā: Kala (Time)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tadā (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (then)

• yuddham: battle
• yuddham: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yuddha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• bhaviṣyati: will happen / will be
• bhaviṣyati: Kriya (Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: bhū (धातु: भू)
• Form: लृट्-लकार (Simple Future), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन, परस्मैपद

Speaker

Nārada

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Vastrāpatha-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Pilgrims/ṛṣis within māhātmya frame

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Nārada, holding his vīṇā, petitions the Lord of gods for favor, asking about the foretold war where a single brāhmaṇa fells kṣatriyas; the air is charged with omen and curiosity.

Characters & Entities

• Nārada
• Deveśa (Lord of gods)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Purāṇic history frames war and power under dharma: spiritual potency (brāhmaṇa-tejas) can overturn worldly strength when destiny and righteousness align.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The discourse belongs to Vastrāpathakṣetra in the Prabhāsa region, where sacred narrative and dharmic turning-points are recounted.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly; the verse presents a question about foretold events rather than prescribing a vrata, dāna, or snāna.