Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 2

Devanagari script

पुष्करान्नैरृते भागे धनुर्विशतिभिः स्मृतम् । यदा बद्धो बलिर्देवि विष्णुना प्रभविष्णुना

Transliteration

puṣkarānnairṛte bhāge dhanurviśatibhiḥ smṛtam | yadā baddho balirdevi viṣṇunā prabhaviṣṇunā

Translation

Man sagt, es liege zwanzig Dhanus südwestlich von Puṣkara. O Göttin, dort wurde Bali von Viṣṇu, dem mächtigen allgegenwärtigen Herrn, gebunden.

Word by Word

• puṣkarāt: from Puṣkara
• puṣkarāt: Apadana (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: puṣkara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, पञ्चमी-विभक्तिः (Ablative/5th), एकवचनम्

• nairṛte: in the southwestern
• nairṛte: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nairṛta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, सप्तमी-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्; bhāge इति पदस्य विशेषणम् (southwestern)

• bhāge: in the region/part
• bhāge: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhāga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, सप्तमी-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्

• dhanurviśatibhiḥ: by twenty bow-lengths
• dhanurviśatibhiḥ: Karana (Measure/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dhanus-viśati (प्रातिपदिक; धनुस् + विशति)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्गे, तृतीया-विभक्तिः (Instrumental/3rd), बहुवचनम्; परिमाणवाचकः (by twenty bow-lengths)

• smṛtam: is said/recorded
• smṛtam: Kriya (Predicative/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: smṛ (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (Past Passive Participle); नपुंसकलिङ्गे, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचनम्; ‘(it is) said/remembered’

• yadā: when
• yadā: Kala (Temporal/काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yadā (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्ययम् (when)

• baddhaḥ: bound
• baddhaḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bandh (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (PPP); पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्; baliḥ इति पदस्य विशेषणम्

• baliḥ: Bali
• baliḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bali (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्

• devi: O goddess
• devi: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: devī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्गे, सम्बोधन-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्

• viṣṇunā: by Viṣṇu
• viṣṇunā: Kartr̥ (Agent in passive/कर्तृ)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viṣṇu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, तृतीया-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्

• prabhaviṣṇunā: by mighty Viṣṇu
• prabhaviṣṇunā: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: prabha-viṣṇu (प्रातिपदिक; प्रभ + विष्णु)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, तृतीया-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्; viṣṇunā इति पदस्य विशेषणम्

Speaker

Śiva (Īśvara)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Bali-bandhana-sthāna (near Puṣkara; as described)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Devī (addressed as ‘devi’)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A pilgrimage marker near Puṣkara: Viṣṇu as Vāmana stands before Bali; the moment of binding is implied, with the landscape measured ‘twenty dhanus’ to the south-west; the Goddess is addressed as witness.

Characters & Entities

• Puṣkara
• Vāmanasvāmi
• Bali
• Viṣṇu
• South-west (nairṛta)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sacred geography is anchored in divine acts; remembering Viṣṇu’s binding of Bali inspires humility and surrender to dharma.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Vāmanasvāmi (Viṣṇu) site near Puṣkara within Prabhāsa-kṣetra’s pilgrimage map.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

A directional instruction for pilgrims: the shrine is twenty dhanus to the south-west of Puṣkara.