Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

पुलस्त्य उवाच । पंगु तीर्थं ततो गच्छेत्सर्वपातकनाशनम् । यत्र पूर्वं तपस्तप्तं पंगुना ब्राह्मणेन च

Transliteration

pulastya uvāca | paṃgu tīrthaṃ tato gacchetsarvapātakanāśanam | yatra pūrvaṃ tapastaptaṃ paṃgunā brāhmaṇena ca

Translation

Pulastya sprach: Dann soll man zur Paṅgu-Tīrtha gehen, der Vernichterin aller Sünden—dorthin, wo einst der Brahmane namens Paṅgu strenge Askese (tapas) übte.

Word by Word

• पुलस्त्यः: Pulastya
• पुलस्त्यः: कर्ता (Speaker/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुलस्त्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन

• उवाच: said
• उवाच: क्रिया (Predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच् (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• पंगु: lame (named Paṅgu / ‘lame’)
• पंगु: कर्म (Object—qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पङ्गु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन; विशेषण (qualifier)

• तीर्थम्: the sacred place (tīrtha)
• तीर्थम्: कर्म (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन

• ततः: then; from there
• ततः: सम्बन्ध/क्रम (Sequence/Source adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय—ततः (from there/then), क्रियाविशेषण

• गच्छेत्: should go
• गच्छेत्: क्रिया (Predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: गम् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• सर्वपातकनाशनम्: destroyer of all sins
• सर्वपातकनाशनम्: विशेषण (Qualifier of object)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक) + पातक (प्रातिपदिक) + नाशन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण (qualifies तीर्थम्); समासः—तत्पुरुष (सर्वेषां पातकानां नाशनम्)

• यत्र: where
• यत्र: अधिकरण (Location—relative)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय—सम्बन्धबोधक/देशवाचक (relative locative adverb)

• पूर्वम्: formerly; earlier
• पूर्वम्: काल (Time)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पूर्वम् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय—कालवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (temporal adverb)

• तपः: austerity/penance
• तपः: कर्म (Object of तप्तम्—internal object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तपस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन

• तप्तम्: was performed
• तप्तम्: क्रिया (Participial predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: तप् (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त—क्त (past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्मणि प्रयोग (done/performed)

• पंगुना: by Paṅgu
• पंगुना: कर्ता (Agent—in passive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पङ्गु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental/3rd), एकवचन

• ब्राह्मणेन: by the Brahmin
• ब्राह्मणेन: कर्ता (Agent—in passive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्राह्मण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• च: and
• च: समुच्चय (Coordinator)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय—समुच्चयबोधक (conjunction)

Speaker

Pulastya

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Paṅgu Tīrtha

Type: kund

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: A king (implied continuation of rājendra address)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A pilgrim party proceeds to Paṅgu Tīrtha; the waterbody/ghat is shown with an aura of purity, while an inset shows the brāhmaṇa Paṅgu performing severe austerities in ancient times.

Characters & Entities

• Pulastya
• Paṅgu
• Paṅgu Tīrtha
• Arbuda (implied by section)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sacred places gain enduring purifying power through the tapas of realized devotees, becoming refuges that destroy sin.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Paṅgu Tīrtha, a sin-destroying pilgrimage spot in the Arbuda sacred region described in the Prabhāsa Khaṇḍa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Pilgrimage—‘one should go’ (gacchet)—to Paṅgu Tīrtha as a dharmic act for purification.