Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 8

Devanagari script

तेनापि निघ्नपुत्रेण देवदेवस्य भास्वतः । स्थापिता प्रतिमा शुभ्रा तत्रैव वरवर्णिनि

Transliteration

tenāpi nighnaputreṇa devadevasya bhāsvataḥ | sthāpitā pratimā śubhrā tatraiva varavarṇini

Translation

وكذلك سَتْرَاجِيتُ ابنُ نِغْنَا أقام هناك بعينه تمثالًا مقدّسًا مشرقًا مباركًا للإله المتلألئ، إلهِ الآلهة (سوريَة)، يا حسنةَ اللون.

Word by Word

• tena: by him/thereby
• tena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे/नपुंसकलिङ्गे, तृतीया (3rd/करण), एकवचन; सर्वनाम-रूपम् (instrumental singular of 'tad')

• api: also, even
• api: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle), समुच्चय/अपि-अर्थे ‘also/even’

• nighna-putreṇa: by the son of Nighna
• nighna-putreṇa: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nighna (प्रातिपदिक) + putra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः: ‘निघ्नस्य पुत्रः’); पुंलिङ्गे, तृतीया (3rd/करण), एकवचन

• deva-devasya: of the god of gods
• deva-devasya: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक) + deva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः: ‘देवानां देवः’); पुंलिङ्गे, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), एकवचन

• bhāsvataḥ: of the radiant one
• bhāsvataḥ: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bhās-vat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifying devadevasya)

• sthāpitā: was installed
• sthāpitā: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √sthā (धा/धातु) + ita (कृत् प्रत्यय)
• Form: कर्मणि-भूतकृदन्त (past passive participle), स्त्रीलिङ्गे, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; ‘स्थापिता’ = ‘was installed/placed’

• pratimā: an image, idol
• pratimā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pratimā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्गे, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन

• śubhrā: bright, pure, white
• śubhrā: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śubhra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्गे, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifying pratimā)

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, देशवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (locative adverb)

• eva: indeed, just
• eva: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (emphatic particle)

• vara-varṇini: O fair-complexioned (lady)
• vara-varṇini: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vara (प्रातिपदिक) + varṇinī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कर्मधारय-समास (‘वरवर्णिनी’ = ‘श्रेष्ठवर्णा’); स्त्रीलिङ्गे, सम्बोधन (8th/vocative), एकवचन

Speaker

Īśvara (Śiva)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Sūrya-pratiṣṭhā-sthāna at Prabhāsa

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Satrājit installs a bright, auspicious image of Sūrya at the very spot—priests, artisans, and attendants arrange the pedestal; the icon gleams with solar brilliance, sanctifying the precinct.

Characters & Entities

• Satrājit (son of Nighna)
• Sūrya (Bhāsvat)
• Pratimā (icon)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Gratitude to the deity is expressed through lasting dharma—establishing worship for the benefit of all, not only oneself.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The very spot where Sūrya’s image was installed in Prabhāsakṣetra, associated with Nāgarāditya.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Pratimā-sthāpana—installing a divine image, implying consecration and ongoing worship at the site.