Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 16

Devanagari script

अथ दुर्वाससा शप्ता रुक्मिणी कृष्णवल्लभा । मूर्च्छनामाप तत्रैव ह्याजगाम पयोनिधिः

Transliteration

atha durvāsasā śaptā rukmiṇī kṛṣṇavallabhā | mūrcchanāmāpa tatraiva hyājagāma payonidhiḥ

Translation

Da wurde Rukmiṇī, Kṛṣṇas Geliebte, von Durvāsas verflucht und sank ebendort in Ohnmacht; und in eben diesem Augenblick kam der Ozean, der Herr der Wasser, dorthin.

Word by Word

• atha: then
• atha: Sambandha (Discourse)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atha (अव्यय)
• Form: अनन्तरार्थक अव्यय (sequence marker)

• durvāsasā: by Durvāsas
• durvāsasā: Karta (Agent in passive/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: durvāsas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन; ऋषिनाम (by Durvāsas)

• śaptā: cursed
• śaptā: Kriya (Predicate; state)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √śap (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्यय (past passive participle); स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• rukmiṇī: Rukmiṇī
• rukmiṇī: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rukmiṇī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषनाम

• kṛṣṇavallabhā: beloved of Kṛṣṇa
• kṛṣṇavallabhā: Visheshana (Apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṛṣṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + vallabhā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; उपाधि/विशेषणरूपेण

• mūrcchanām: fainting
• mūrcchanām: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mūrcchanā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• āpa: attained/reached
• āpa: Kriya (Predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √āp (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikarana (Place)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक अव्यय (adverb of place)

• eva: indeed/just
• eva: Sambandha (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारणार्थक निपात

• hi: indeed
• hi: Sambandha (Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (emphatic)

• ājagāma: came
• ājagāma: Kriya (Predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ā-√gam (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• payonidhiḥ: ocean (treasury of waters)
• payonidhiḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: payaḥ (प्रातिपदिक) + nidhi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

Speaker

Narrator (Purāṇic narrator in Dvārakā Māhātmya context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Dvārakā-samudra-tīra (Dvārakā seashore)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Rukmiṇī, Kṛṣṇa’s beloved, collapses from Durvāsas’ curse; at that instant the Ocean arrives as a personified lord of waters, approaching with solemn compassion.

Characters & Entities

• Durvāsas
• Rukmiṇī
• Kṛṣṇa
• Ocean (payo-nidhi)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The verse highlights the moral gravity of saintly speech—Durvāsas’s curse bears immediate effect—while divine providence simultaneously arranges protection.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Dvārakā is the sacred setting, presented in the Skanda Purāṇa as a revered divine city within the Prabhāsa Khaṇḍa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No ritual instruction is given in this verse.