Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 19

Devanagari script

सूत उवाच । एवमुक्तः कपालं स परिक्षिप्य धरातले । जगामादर्शनं सद्यो दीपवद्द्विजसत्तमाः

Transliteration

sūta uvāca | evamuktaḥ kapālaṃ sa parikṣipya dharātale | jagāmādarśanaṃ sadyo dīpavaddvijasattamāḥ

Translation

سوت نے کہا: یوں کہے جانے پر اُس نے کھوپڑی کا پیالہ زمین پر پھینک دیا؛ اور اے بہترین دِوِجوں! وہ فوراً چراغ کی طرح بجھ کر نظروں سے اوجھل ہو گیا۔

Word by Word

• sūtaḥ: Sūta
• sūtaḥ: Karta (Speaker/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sūta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन

• evam: thus
• evam: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: evam (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रकारवाचक-अव्यय (adverb of manner)

• uktaḥ: having been addressed
• uktaḥ: Kriya-visheshana (Predicate qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √vac (धातु)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्मणि (having been spoken to/addressed)

• kapālam: skull-bowl
• kapālam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kapāla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• saḥ: he
• saḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• parikṣipya: having thrown down
• parikṣipya: Purvakala-kriya (Prior action)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: pari-√kṣip (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (absolutive/gerund): 'having thrown/strewn'

• dharātale: on the ground
• dharātale: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dharā-tala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (dharāyāḥ tala)

• jagāma: went
• jagāma: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √gam (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• adarśanam: out of sight; invisibility
• adarśanam: Gati/Karma (Goal)
• Type: Noun
• Root: a-darśana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; गत्यर्थे लक्ष्य (into invisibility/out of sight)

• sadyaḥ: immediately
• sadyaḥ: Kriya-visheshana (Temporal)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sadyaḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (adverb of time)

• dīpavat: like a lamp
• dīpavat: Kriya-visheshana (Manner)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: dīpa + vat (अव्यय/तद्धित)
• Form: उपमानवाचक-अव्यय (simile adverb: 'like a lamp')

• dvijasattamāḥ: O best of Brahmins (addressed) / best among the twice-born
• dvijasattamāḥ: Karta (Observer/subject in narration)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvija + sattama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (dvijānāṃ sattamāḥ)

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa/Sūta-narrator)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: dvija-sattamāḥ (best of the twice-born)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A figure drops a skull-bowl onto the earth in a yajña pavilion; in the next instant he fades away, depicted as a dimming flame; priests and brāhmaṇas look on in astonishment; the fire continues steady, symbolizing dharma’s continuity.

Characters & Entities

• Sūta
• Kapāla (skull-bowl)
• Dvijas (Brahmins)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Disruptive or impure influences around sacred rites can appear suddenly and vanish suddenly, highlighting the need for vigilance and ritual integrity.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The setting is the yajña-vāṭa within the Nāgarakhaṇḍa’s Tīrthamāhātmya; the precise tīrtha name is not contained in this verse.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct injunction is given here; it narrates the act of casting the kapāla away and the immediate disappearance.