Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 57

Devanagari script

अथ सा दयिता मह्यं तदादाय कलेवरम् । हर्षेण महताविष्टा प्रविष्टा हव्यवाहनम्

Transliteration

atha sā dayitā mahyaṃ tadādāya kalevaram | harṣeṇa mahatāviṣṭā praviṣṭā havyavāhanam

Translation

تب میری محبوبہ نے میرا وہ جسم اٹھا لیا اور عظیم مسرّت سے لبریز ہو کر ہویہ واہن، یعنی یَجْن کی آگ میں داخل ہو گئی۔

Word by Word

• अथ: then
• अथ: Sambandha (Discourse connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अनुक्रम/आरम्भसूचक (indeclinable; then/now marker)

• सा: she
• सा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; सर्वनाम (fem. nom. sg.)

• दयिता: beloved (woman)
• दयिता: Karta (Apposition/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दयित (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; भाववाचक/व्यक्तिवाचक (fem. nom. sg.)

• मह्यम्: to me
• मह्यम्: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: उभयलिङ्ग/सर्वनाम, चतुर्थी (4th), एकवचन (dat. sg.)

• तत्: that
• तत्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; सर्वनाम (neut. acc. sg.)

• आदाय: having taken
• आदाय: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial to main action/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: आ-दा (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्यय (gerund); ‘आदाय’ = having taken

• कलेवरम्: body
• कलेवरम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कलेवर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन (acc. sg.)

• हर्षेण: with joy
• हर्षेण: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हर्ष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन (instr. sg.)

• महतā: great
• महतā: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन (instr. sg.); विशेषण

• आविष्टा: overcome/filled
• आविष्टा: Karta (Predicate adjective/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: आ-विश् (धातु) → आविष्ट (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: क्त (past passive participle), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; ‘आविष्टा’ = possessed/overcome

• प्रविष्टा: entered
• प्रविष्टा: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र-विश् (धातु) → प्रविष्ट (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: क्त (past passive participle) स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; क्रियार्थे (used as finite: entered)

• हव्यवाहनम्: the fire (Agni)
• हव्यवाहनम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हव्य + वाहन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (‘हव्यं वहति’ इति)

Speaker

Rājā (continuing narration)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Mahākāla (contextual)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: dvija-sattamāḥ (best of Brahmins) (context continues in subsequent verses)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A devoted wife lifts or embraces her husband’s lifeless body and steps into a blazing sacrificial fire, her face serene with paradoxical joy; priests and onlookers stand stunned as flames rise like a golden pillar.

Characters & Entities

• Agni (Havyavāhana)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The narrative highlights unwavering spousal fidelity and the extraordinary transformative power attributed to actions performed in a sacred Śaiva setting.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The sanctified temple environment associated with Mahākāla/Hara in the chapter’s Tīrthamāhātmya; the verse itself focuses on the event rather than a named tīrtha.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct prescription; it narrates the beloved entering fire (havyavāhana), a motif of extreme fidelity in Purāṇic storytelling.