Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 198

Devanagari script

तस्मात्सर्वप्रयत्नेन यात्रां तत्र समाचरेत् । अर्बुदे पर्वतश्रेष्ठे सर्वतीर्थमये शुभे

Transliteration

tasmātsarvaprayatnena yātrāṃ tatra samācaret | arbude parvataśreṣṭhe sarvatīrthamaye śubhe

Translation

Darum soll man mit allem Eifer dort die Pilgerfahrt vollziehen—zum Arbuda, dem vorzüglichsten der Berge, glückverheißend und die Verdienste aller Tīrthas in sich tragend.

Word by Word

• tasmāt: therefore
• tasmāt: Hetu (Cause/हेतु)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तस्मात् इति निपातवत् (ablative used adverbially: ‘therefore/from that’)

• sarva-prayatnena: with all effort
• sarva-prayatnena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक) + prayatna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (करण), एकवचन; समासः—सर्वः प्रयत्नः यस्य/येन (all effort)

• yātrām: pilgrimage
• yātrām: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yātrā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय (adverb of place)

• samācaret: should perform/practise
• samācaret: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-√car (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• arbude: on/at Arbuda (mountain)
• arbude: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: arbuda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• parvata-śreṣṭhe: on the best of mountains
• parvata-śreṣṭhe: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: parvata (प्रातिपदिक) + śreṣṭha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः—पर्वतानां श्रेष्ठः (best among mountains)

• sarva-tīrtha-maye: in the one consisting of all sacred fords
• sarva-tīrtha-maye: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक) + tīrtha (प्रातिपदिक) + maya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; ‘सर्वतीर्थमय’ = made of/consisting of all tīrthas

• śubhe: auspicious
• śubhe: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śubha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; agrees with arbude/parvataśreṣṭhe

Speaker

Pulastya (deduced from immediate continuation in Adhyāya 37)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Arbuda (sarva-tīrtha-maya parvata)

Type: peak

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Pārthiva (king)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A grand panoramic of Mount Arbuda as an auspicious ‘all-tīrtha’ mountain: multiple shrines, hermitages, sacred pools, and pilgrims ascending with determination.

Characters & Entities

• Arbuda
• Parvataśreṣṭha
• Sarvatīrtha

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

A truly exalted kṣetra concentrates the merit of many holy places; earnest effort toward pilgrimage is itself dharma.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Arbuda (Arbudaparvata), praised as ‘sarva-tīrtha-maya’—equivalent in sanctity to all tīrthas.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

The prescription is to perform yātrā (pilgrimage) to Arbuda with full commitment.