Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 7

Devanagari script

तत्र शंखं तु प्रक्षाल्य कृतं तीर्थं महाप्रभम् । तत्र पूरितवाञ्छङ्खं मेघगम्भीरनिस्वनम्

Transliteration

tatra śaṃkhaṃ tu prakṣālya kṛtaṃ tīrthaṃ mahāprabham | tatra pūritavāñchaṅkhaṃ meghagambhīranisvanam

Translation

Dort wusch er die Muschel und errichtete eine überaus strahlende Tīrtha. Dort füllte er die Muschel, die mit tiefem Klang wie Donner in Wolken widerhallte.

Word by Word

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम्; देशवाचक

• शंखम्: the conch
• शंखम्: Karman (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शंख (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन

• तु: indeed/and
• तु: Sambandha (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम्; निपात

• प्रक्षाल्य: having washed
• प्रक्षाल्य: Kriya (Prior action/पूर्वक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र-क्षल् (धातु) → प्रक्षाल्य (क्त्वान्त)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्ययकृदन्त (Gerund); पूर्वक्रिया—having washed

• कृतम्: was made/created
• कृतम्: Kriya (Main action/मुख्यक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु) → कृत (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन; कर्मणि/भावे—‘तीर्थं कृतम्’ = a tīrtha was made

• तीर्थम्: a sacred ford/place of pilgrimage
• तीर्थम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन

• महा-प्रभम्: greatly splendid
• महा-प्रभम्: Karta-bhava (Predicative/विधेय)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महा (प्रातिपदिक) + प्रभ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन; कर्मधारय—महच्च तत् प्रभम्; विशेषणम् (तीर्थम्)

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम्; देशवाचक

• पूरितवान्: filled (has filled)
• पूरितवान्: Kriya (Main action/मुख्यक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: पूॄ/पूर् (धातु) → पूरितवत् (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कृत्-प्रत्यय ‘क्तवतुँ’ (Perfect participle active), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन; कर्तरि—‘(सः) पूरितवान्’ = he filled

• शंखम्: the conch
• शंखम्: Karman (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शंख (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन

• मेघ-गम्भीर-निस्वनम्: with a sound deep like thunderclouds
• मेघ-गम्भीर-निस्वनम्: Karman (Object qualifier/कर्मविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मेघ (प्रातिपदिक) + गम्भीर (प्रातिपदिक) + निस्वन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन; समासः—मेघस्य इव गम्भीरः निस्वनः यस्य (बहुपद-तत्पुरुष/उपमानपूर्वपद); विशेषणम् (शंखम्)

Speaker

Narrator (contextual Purāṇic narration within Prabhāsakṣetra Māhātmya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Śaṅkhodaka-kuṇḍa / Mahāprabha-tīrtha (as described)

Type: kund

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Devī (addressed)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: At Prabhāsa, the conch-form is washed; a radiant tīrtha manifests. The conch is then filled, and it emits a deep, thundercloud-like resonance that vibrates across the sacred landscape.

Characters & Entities

• Śaṅkha (conch)
• Tīrtha
• Thunder-like sound (megha-gambhīra-nisvana)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Purity (cleansing) and consecration transform an object and a place into a luminous tīrtha, revealing sacred power through signs like auspicious sound.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

A tīrtha established at Prabhāsa, connected with the conch and later known through the Śaṅkhodaka tradition.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Prakṣālana (ritual washing/cleansing) and the act of establishing a tīrtha; filling the conch with sacred water as part of the rite.