Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 74

Devanagari script

नरस्त्रीनपुंसकाख्याश्च जातिभेदा जरायुजाः । चतुष्पदाश्च पशवो ग्राम्याश्चारण्यजास्तथा

Transliteration

narastrīnapuṃsakākhyāśca jātibhedā jarāyujāḥ | catuṣpadāśca paśavo grāmyāścāraṇyajāstathā

Translation

男子、女子以及所谓第三性者——随其生类而有差别——皆属胎生。四足诸兽亦复如是：或家畜，或林野之兽，皆为胎生。

Word by Word

• नर: men
• नर: Karta (Subject complement)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा, बहुवचनम् (class-name; in list)

• स्त्री: women
• स्त्री: Karta (Subject complement)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्त्री (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्गे, प्रथमा, बहुवचनम् (class-name; in list)

• नपुंसक: neuters
• नपुंसक: Karta (Subject complement)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नपुंसक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, प्रथमा, बहुवचनम् (class-name; in list)

• आख्याः: called, named
• आख्याः: Karta (Subject complement qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: आख्या (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा, बहुवचनम्; विशेषणम् (to नर/स्त्री/नपुंसक—‘called/named’)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम्; समुच्चयार्थकः

• जातिभेदाः: differences of species/kinds
• जातिभेदाः: Karta (Subject complement)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जाति-भेद (प्रातिपदिक; जाति + भेद)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा, बहुवचनम् (nominative plural)

• जरायुजाः: womb-born beings
• जरायुजाः: Karta (Subject complement)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जरायुज (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा, बहुवचनम् (nominative plural; class)

• चतुष्पदाः: four-footed (animals)
• चतुष्पदाः: Karta (Subject complement)
• Type: Noun
• Root: चतुष्-पद (प्रातिपदिक; चतुष् + पद)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा, बहुवचनम् (nominative plural)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम्; समुच्चयार्थकः

• पशवः: beasts, animals
• पशवः: Karta (Subject complement)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पशु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा, बहुवचनम्

• ग्राम्याः: domestic
• ग्राम्याः: Karta (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ग्राम्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा, बहुवचनम्; विशेषणम् (to पशवः)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम्; समुच्चयार्थकः

• आरण्यजाः: wild, forest-born
• आरण्यजाः: Karta (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: आरण्यज (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा, बहुवचनम्; विशेषणम् (to पशवः)

• तथा: likewise
• तथा: Sambandha (Connector/adverb)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम्; समुच्चय/प्रकारार्थकः

Speaker

Unspecified (narrative voice within Prabhāsakṣetramāhātmya; context suggests a Purāṇic narrator describing classifications of beings)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A teaching tableau showing diverse humans (man, woman, third-gender figure) alongside domesticated cattle and wild deer, all under a unifying banner of jarāyuja (womb-born).

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

All embodied beings arise through ordered natural processes; recognizing this supports humility and dharmic regard for life.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa-kṣetra is the broader setting; this verse functions as cosmological framing within its māhātmya.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None in this verse; it is descriptive rather than prescriptive.