Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 5

Devanagari script

देव्युवाच । भगवन्विस्तराद्ब्रूहि दामोदरमहोदयम् । क्षेत्रगर्भस्य माहात्म्यं कर्णिकारूपसंस्थितम्

Transliteration

devyuvāca | bhagavanvistarādbrūhi dāmodaramahodayam | kṣetragarbhasya māhātmyaṃ karṇikārūpasaṃsthitam

Translation

দেবী বললেন— হে ভগবান, দামোদরের মহাগৌরব বিস্তারে বলুন; আর ক্ষেত্রের অন্তর্গর্ভের মাহাত্ম্যও বলুন, যা কর্ণিকা-রূপে প্রতিষ্ঠিত।

Word by Word

• देवी: the Goddess
• देवी: Karta (Speaker/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देवी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (कर्ता), एकवचन

• उवाच: said
• उवाच: Kriya (Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच् (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (परोक्षभूत/परिपूर्णभूत), प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• भगवन्: O Lord
• भगवन्: Sambodhana (Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भगवत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• विस्तरात्: in detail
• विस्तरात्: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: विस्तर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; क्रियाविशेषणार्थे (ablative of manner: in detail)

• ब्रूहि: tell; speak
• ब्रूहि: Kriya (Imperative)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ब्रू (धातु)
• Form: लोट्-लकार (आज्ञार्थ), मध्यम-पुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• दामोदरमहोदयम्: the great glory of Dāmodara
• दामोदरमहोदयम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दामोदर + महोदय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (कर्म), एकवचन; समासः—षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (दामोदरस्य महोदयम्)

• क्षेत्रगर्भस्य: of the ‘womb/inner core’ of the sacred field
• क्षेत्रगर्भस्य: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: क्षेत्रगर्भ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (सम्बन्ध), एकवचन; समासः—षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (क्षेत्रस्य गर्भः)

• माहात्म्यम्: greatness; sacred glory
• माहात्म्यम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: माहात्म्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (कर्म), एकवचन

• कर्णिकारूपसंस्थितम्: situated in the form of a karṇikā (lotus-whorl)
• कर्णिकारूपसंस्थितम्: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कर्णिका + रूप + संस्थित (प्रातिपदिक/कृदन्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (कर्णिकारूपे संस्थितम् = situated in the form of a karṇikā); माहात्म्य-विशेषणम्

Speaker

Devī (Pārvatī)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Vastrāpatha-kṣetra (kṣetra-garbha/karṇikā)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Īśvara (Śiva)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: The Goddess, reverent and inquisitive, addresses Īśvara; behind them a symbolic lotus-maṇḍala of the kṣetra appears, with a bright central karṇikā indicating Dāmodara’s seat.

Characters & Entities

• Devī
• Bhagavān (Śiva)
• Dāmodara (Kṛṣṇa)
• Kṣetra-garbha
• Karṇikā (lotus-core imagery)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

True tīrtha-understanding seeks the ‘inner core’ of holiness, not merely external geography—symbolized by the lotus-core (karṇikā).

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Vastrāpatha-kṣetra (by context), especially its ‘kṣetra-garbha’—the central, most sacred locus.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; this is a request for detailed teaching about the site’s inner sanctity and Dāmodara’s glory.