Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 102

Devanagari script

शिलावगूहनं तेषां जायते जन्मसप्ततिम् । ज्वलन्तीमायसीं घोरां बहुकण्टकसंवृताम्

Transliteration

śilāvagūhanaṃ teṣāṃ jāyate janmasaptatim | jvalantīmāyasīṃ ghorāṃ bahukaṇṭakasaṃvṛtām

Translation

ان کے لیے ستر جنموں تک “شِلا آغوش” نامی عذاب پیدا ہوتا ہے—لوہے کی ہولناک، دہکتی قیدگاہ، جو ہر طرف بے شمار کانٹوں سے گھری ہوتی ہے۔

Word by Word

• śilā: stone, rock
• śilā: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śilā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन (Feminine, Nom/Acc, Singular)

• avagūhanam: being hidden/covered (in stone)
• avagūhanam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ava√gūh (धातु) + ana (प्रत्यय) → avagūhana (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः: śilā + avagūhanam (Neuter, Nom, Singular; genitive-determinative compound)

• teṣām: of them
• teṣām: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, बहुवचन (Genitive, Plural)

• jāyate: is born/arises
• jāyate: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √jan (धातु)
• Form: लट्, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, आत्मनेपद (Present, 3rd person, Singular, Ātmanepada)

• janma: birth
• janma: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: janman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रातिपदिक (compound member) (Neuter stem, used in compound)

• saptatim: seventy (births)
• saptatim: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: saptati (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; द्विगु-समासः: janma + saptatim (Feminine, Acc, Singular; numerical compound)

• jvalantīm: blazing
• jvalantīm: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √jval (धातु) → jvalant (कृदन्त)
• Form: वर्तमानकृदन्त (शतृ), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (Present active participle, Feminine, Acc, Singular)

• āyasīm: made of iron
• āyasīm: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: āyasī (प्रातिपदिक) < ayas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (Feminine, Acc, Singular)

• ghorām: terrible
• ghorām: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ghora (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (Feminine, Acc, Singular)

• bahu: many
• bahu: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bahu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रातिपदिक (compound member) (Stem used in compound)

• kaṇṭaka: thorn
• kaṇṭaka: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kaṇṭaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रातिपदिक (compound member) (Masculine stem, used in compound)

• saṃvṛtām: covered/enclosed (with many thorns)
• saṃvṛtām: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sam√vṛ (धातु) → saṃvṛta (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः: bahu-kaṇṭaka + saṃvṛtām (Past participle, Feminine, Acc, Singular; determinative compound)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced from Āvantya Khaṇḍa māhātmya-style narration)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A blazing iron enclosure like a prison, closing in as a ‘stone-embrace’, ringed with dense thorns; terrified beings pressed within, overseen by Yama’s attendants.

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Actions opposed to dharma lead to prolonged suffering across many births; the Purāṇa warns devotees to choose righteous conduct, especially in sacred contexts like the Revā-māhātmya.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The broader setting is the Revā Khaṇḍa (Narmadā/Revā sacred geography) within the Āvantya Khaṇḍa, where the greatness of the Revā-region and its dharmic norms are taught.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct ritual (snāna, dāna, japa, vrata) is stated in this verse; it functions as a karmic warning within the māhātmya narrative.