Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 52

Devanagari script

अलंकाराश्च च्छत्राणि ध्वजाश्च कवचानि च । ह्रियमाणानि दृश्यंते रक्षोभिस्तु भयानकैः

Transliteration

alaṃkārāśca cchatrāṇi dhvajāśca kavacāni ca | hriyamāṇāni dṛśyaṃte rakṣobhistu bhayānakaiḥ

Translation

زیورات، چھتر، جھنڈے اور زرہیں بھی دکھائی دیں کہ خوفناک راکشس انہیں چھین کر لے جا رہے ہیں—تباہی کے قریب آنے کی ایک اور علامت۔

Word by Word

• alaṃkārāḥ: ornaments
• alaṃkārāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: alaṃkāra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन (Plural)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• chatrāṇi: umbrellas
• chatrāṇi: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: chatra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन (Plural)

• dhvajāḥ: banners/flags
• dhvajāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dhvaja (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन (Plural)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• kavacāni: armours
• kavacāni: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kavaca (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन (Plural)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• hriyamāṇāni: being carried away
• hriyamāṇāni: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √hṛ (हृ धातु) + शानच् (शतृ-प्रत्यय/वर्तमानकाले कर्मणि)
• Form: कर्मणि वर्तमानकाले शानच्-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (present passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन (Plural)

• dṛśyante: are seen/appear
• dṛśyante: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √dṛś (दृश् धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन (Plural)

• rakṣobhiḥ: by the demons
• rakṣobhiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rakṣas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (रक्षस्), तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), बहुवचन (Plural)

• tu: indeed/but
• tu: Sambandha (Discourse particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, विरोध/विशेषणार्थक-निपात (particle: but/indeed)

• bhayānakaiḥ: terrifying
• bhayānakaiḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bhayānaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), बहुवचन (Plural); विशेषणम् (rakṣobhiḥ इति)

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) narrating (contextual deduction within Māhātmya narration)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra (contextual)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Daytime omen: rākṣasas snatch ornaments, parasols, banners, and armor from startled warriors and citizens; flags droop, a royal parasol tilts, the city’s grandeur appears suddenly hollow.

Characters & Entities

• Rākṣasa

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Worldly glory and protection are unstable; when dharma weakens, even signs of sovereignty are portrayed as slipping away—prompting refuge in sacred duty.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa is the sacred destination framed by these omens in the Prabhāsakṣetra Māhātmya.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None in this verse; it is a narrative omen (nimitta) rather than a rite.