Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 41

Devanagari script

आपस्तंब उवाच । उत्तिष्ठाम्येष सुप्रीतः सम्यक्क्रीतोऽस्मि पार्थिव । गोभ्यो मूल्यं न पश्यामि पवित्रं परमं भुवि

Transliteration

āpastaṃba uvāca | uttiṣṭhāmyeṣa suprītaḥ samyakkrīto'smi pārthiva | gobhyo mūlyaṃ na paśyāmi pavitraṃ paramaṃ bhuvi

Translation

قال آباستَمبا: «إنني أنهض—وقد امتلأتُ سرورًا، أيها الملك. لقد أُرضيتُ على الوجه الصحيح. ولا أرى في الأرض ثمنًا أسمى من البقر، فهو المطهِّر الأعلى في الدنيا.»

Word by Word

• āpastaṃbaḥ: Āpastamba
• āpastaṃbaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: āpastaṃba (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट्, परस्मैपदम्, प्रथमपुरुषः, एकवचनम्

• uttiṣṭhāmi: I rise / I stand up
• uttiṣṭhāmi: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ut-sthā (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), परस्मैपदम्, उत्तमपुरुषः (1st person), एकवचनम्

• eṣaḥ: here (I am) / this one
• eṣaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etad (प्रातिपदिक/सर्वनाम)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्; देह-निर्देशे निपातवत् (here: ‘here I am/this (I)’)

• suprītaḥ: very pleased
• suprītaḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: su + prīta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्; कर्मधारयः (well-pleased)

• samyak: properly, fully
• samyak: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: samyak (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम्; क्रियाविशेषणम् (adverb)

• krītaḥ: bought
• krītaḥ: Pratijna/Predicate (Predicate/विधेय)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: krī (धातु) + ta (कृत् प्रत्यय)
• Form: भूतकृदन्तः, पुंलिङ्गः, प्रथमा, एकवचनम्; विधेय-विशेषणम्

• asmi: I am
• asmi: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: as (धातु)
• Form: लट्, परस्मैपदम्, उत्तमपुरुषः, एकवचनम्

• pārthiva: O king
• pārthiva: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pārthiva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गः, सम्बोधन, एकवचनम्

• gobhyaḥ: from the cows
• gobhyaḥ: Apadana (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: go (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्गः, पञ्चमी/चतुर्थी, बहुवचनम्; अत्र पञ्चमी (from the cows)

• mūlyam: price
• mūlyam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mūlya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गः, द्वितीया, एकवचनम्

• na: not
• na: Nishedha (Negation/निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम्; निषेध

• paśyāmi: I see / I consider
• paśyāmi: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dṛś (धातु)
• Form: लट्, परस्मैपदम्, उत्तमपुरुषः, एकवचनम्

• pavitram: purifier, sacred thing
• pavitram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pavitra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गः, द्वितीया, एकवचनम्; कर्मरूपेण (as what is seen/considered)

• paramam: supreme
• paramam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: parama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गः, द्वितीया, एकवचनम्; विशेषणम् (pavitram)

• bhuvi: on earth
• bhuvi: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhū (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्गः, सप्तमी (7th case), एकवचनम्

Speaker

Āpastamba

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Āpastamba, serene and authoritative, rises from his seat addressing the king; cows stand nearby as the emblem of the ‘price’ that surpasses all.

Characters & Entities

• Āpastamba
• Nabhāga
• Gāvaḥ (cows)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Cows symbolize supreme purity and sustaining dharma; honoring them is portrayed as a high meritorious act.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa-kṣetra, framed as a place where purity, dāna, and sage-blessings are especially efficacious.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Go-dāna is affirmed as the foremost ‘mūlya’ and purifier, suitable for appeasing a sage.