Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

पुलस्त्य उवाच । ततो गच्छेन्नृपश्रेष्ठ जंबूतीर्थमनुत्तमम् । तत्र स्नातो नरः सम्यगिष्टं फलमवाप्नुयात् जंबूद्वीपसमुत्थानां तीर्थानां नृपसत्तम

Transliteration

pulastya uvāca | tato gacchennṛpaśreṣṭha jaṃbūtīrthamanuttamam | tatra snāto naraḥ samyagiṣṭaṃ phalamavāpnuyāt jaṃbūdvīpasamutthānāṃ tīrthānāṃ nṛpasattama

Translation

Pulastya sprach: „Dann, o bester der Könige, soll man zum unvergleichlichen Jambū-Tīrtha gehen. Wer dort in rechter Weise badet, erlangt die ersehnte Frucht—o erhabenster Herrscher—denn dieses Tīrtha ist aus der Heiligkeit der Pilgerstätten Jambūdvīpas hervorgegangen.“

Word by Word

• pulastyaḥ: Pulastya
• pulastyaḥ: Karta (Speaker/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pulastya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (धातु)
• Form: Liṭ-lakāra (लिट्, perfect), Parasmaipada, 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular

• tataḥ: then, thereafter
• tataḥ: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: Kārya-krama/hetu-vācaka avyaya (क्रम/ततः), adverb

• gacchet: should go
• gacchet: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: gam (धातु)
• Form: Loṭ-lakāra (लोट्, imperative/vidhi), Parasmaipada, 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular; injunctive sense 'should go'

• nṛpa-śreṣṭha: O best of kings
• nṛpa-śreṣṭha: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nṛpa (प्रातिपदिक) + śreṣṭha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Vocative (8th/सम्बोधन), Singular; sambodhana

• jaṃbū-tīrtham: Jambū-tīrtha
• jaṃbū-tīrtham: Karma (Goal/Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jaṃbū (प्रातिपदिक) + tīrtha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular; destination of motion

• anuttamam: unsurpassed
• anuttamam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: anuttama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular; agrees with tīrtham

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: Deśavācaka avyaya (देशवाचक अव्यय), adverb

• snātaḥ: having bathed
• snātaḥ: Kartṛ-samānādhikaraṇa (Predicate/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: snāta (कृदन्त; √snā)
• Form: Past passive participle (क्त), Masculine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular; used predicatively with naraḥ

• naraḥ: a man
• naraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular

• samyak: properly
• samyak: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: samyak (अव्यय)
• Form: Rīti-vācaka avyaya (रीतिवाचक अव्यय), adverb

• iṣṭam: desired
• iṣṭam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: iṣṭa (कृदन्त; √iṣ)
• Form: Past passive participle (क्त), Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular; agrees with phalam

• phalam: fruit, result
• phalam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: phala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular

• avāpnuyāt: would obtain
• avāpnuyāt: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: āp (धातु)
• Form: Vidhi-liṅ (विधिलिङ्, optative), Parasmaipada, 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular; with prefix ava-

• jaṃbū-dvīpa-samutthānām: of those originating in Jambūdvīpa
• jaṃbū-dvīpa-samutthānām: Ṣaṣṭhī-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: jaṃbūdvīpa (प्रातिपदिक; जंबू + द्वीप) + samutthāna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Plural; qualifies tīrthānām: 'of the tīrthas arising in Jambūdvīpa'

• tīrthānām: of the sacred fords/pilgrimage places
• tīrthānām: Ṣaṣṭhī-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tīrtha (प्रातिपदik)
• Form: Neuter, Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Plural

• nṛpa-sattama: O best of kings
• nṛpa-sattama: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nṛpa (प्रातिपदिक) + sattama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Vocative (8th/सम्बोधन), Singular

Speaker

Pulastya

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Jambū Tīrtha

Type: kund

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: A king (nṛpaśreṣṭha)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Pulastya instructs a king on proceeding to Jambū Tīrtha; a serene waterbody with pilgrims bathing, with Arbuda’s rocky slopes in the background and sages as witnesses.

Characters & Entities

• Pulastya
• Jambū Tīrtha
• Jambūdvīpa
• king (listener)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Pilgrimage (yātrā) and tīrtha-snān, done correctly, are upheld as dharmic means to attain one’s righteous aims and spiritual merit.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Jambū Tīrtha, described as anuttama (unsurpassed).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Go to Jambū Tīrtha and perform proper snāna to obtain iṣṭa-phala (desired results).