Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 70

Devanagari script

डंबरप्रवहाडीन राजहंसकुलाकुला । डमड्डमरुहस्ता च डामरोक्त महांडका

Transliteration

ḍaṃbarapravahāḍīna rājahaṃsakulākulā | ḍamaḍḍamaruhastā ca ḍāmarokta mahāṃḍakā

Translation

她以华丽轰鸣之流而行，群群王鹅簇拥其间。手持达摩鲁鼓，她是“达摩罗”传承所宣说的伟大威力者——恒河，其神圣嬉戏恒常吉祥。

Word by Word

• डंबरप्रवहाडीन: moving/abounding with tumultuous flow (sense uncertain)
• डंबरप्रवहाडीन: Visheshana (Adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: डंबर (प्रातिपदिक) + प्रवह (प्रातिपदिक) + अडीन (प्रातिपदिक; uncertain/देश्य)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः; अडीन-शब्दस्य अर्थ/प्रकृति अनिश्चित

• राजहंसकुलाकुला: crowded with flocks of royal swans
• राजहंसकुलाकुला: Visheshana (Adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: राजहंस (प्रातिपदिक) + कुल (प्रातिपदिक) + आकुल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (राजहंसकुलैः आकुला)

• डमड्डमरुहस्ता: she who holds a ḍamaru (drum) in her hand
• डमड्डमरुहस्ता: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: डमड्डमरु (प्रातिपदिक; डमरु-वाद्य) + हस्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; बहुव्रीहिः (डमड्डमरुः हस्ते यस्याः सा)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• डामरोक्त: mentioned in the Ḍāmara (tantric text/tradition)
• डामरोक्त: Visheshana (Adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: डामर (प्रातिपदिक) + उक्त (कृदन्त; √वच् धातु, क्त)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (डामरे उक्ता/डामरेण उक्ता)

• महांडका: the great ‘egg/orb’ (epithet; sense context-specific)
• महांडका: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महा (प्रातिपदिक) + अण्डक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारयः (महान् अण्डकः/महाण्डका)

Speaker

Skanda

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kāśī-Gaṅgā (maṅgala-pravāha)

Type: ghat

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Kāśī-māhātmya audience

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A roaring, splendid Gaṅgā current filled with white royal swans; above the waters, Gaṅgā-devī is shown holding a ḍamaru like Śiva’s emblem; the scene radiates auspiciousness and tantric-maṅgala energy.

Characters & Entities

• Gaṅgā
• Kāśī
• Śiva

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Gaṅgā is inseparable from Śiva’s sacred power—her riverine beauty is also a theological sign of auspiciousness and liberation.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Gaṅgā stream at Kāśī, envisioned as a Śaiva tīrtha filled with auspicious signs (haṃsas, sacred sound).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly; the verse frames Gaṅgā as worthy of Śaiva-style praise and worship at the river.