Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 10

Devanagari script

आवर्तास्तत्र सञ्जाता ज्येष्ठमध्यकनीयसः । अथ नामाकरोत्तस्या ब्रह्मा लोकपितामहः

Transliteration

āvartāstatra sañjātā jyeṣṭhamadhyakanīyasaḥ | atha nāmākarottasyā brahmā lokapitāmahaḥ

Translation

Dort entstanden drei Strudel — der ältere, der mittlere und der jüngere; darauf verlieh Brahmā, der Ahnvater der Welten, jenem (Ort/Fluss) einen Namen.

Word by Word

• āvartāḥ: whirlpools/eddies
• āvartāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: āvarta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga (पुंलिङ्ग), Prathamā (1st/प्रथमा), Bahuvacana (बहुवचन)

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: Deśavyaya (देशवाचक-अव्यय)

• sañjātāḥ: arose, came into being
• sañjātāḥ: Kriyā (Predicate as participle/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-jan (धातु)
• Form: Kta-participle (क्त), Puṃliṅga (पुंलिङ्ग), Prathamā (1st/प्रथमा), Bahuvacana (बहुवचन)

• jyeṣṭha-madhya-kanīyasaḥ: (as) elder, middle, and younger
• jyeṣṭha-madhya-kanīyasaḥ: Karta (Subject-qualifier/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: jyeṣṭha (प्रातिपदिक) + madhya (प्रातिपदिक) + kanīyas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga (पुंलिङ्ग), Prathamā (1st/प्रथमा), Bahuvacana (बहुवचन); itaretara-dvandva (इतरेतर-द्वन्द्व) qualifying āvartāḥ

• atha: then
• atha: Sambandha (Discourse connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atha (अव्यय)
• Form: Nipāta (निपात), sequence/then

• nāma: name
• nāma: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nāman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napumsaka (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Dvitīyā (2nd/द्वितीया), Ekavacana (एकवचन)

• akarot: made, gave
• akarot: Kriyā (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kṛ (धातु)
• Form: Laṅ (लङ्, past/imperfect), Prathama-puruṣa (3rd person/प्रथमपुरुष), Ekavacana (एकवचन); parasmaipada

• tasyāḥ: of her/that (river)
• tasyāḥ: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Ṣaṣṭhī (6th/षष्ठी), Ekavacana (एकवचन)

• brahmā: Brahmā
• brahmā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga (पुंलिङ्ग), Prathamā (1st/प्रथमा), Ekavacana (एकवचन)

• lokapitāmahaḥ: grandfather of the worlds
• lokapitāmahaḥ: Karta (Apposition/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: loka (प्रातिपदik) + pitāmaha (प्रातिपदik)
• Form: Puṃliṅga (पुंलिङ्ग), Prathamā (1st/प्रथमा), Ekavacana (एकवचन); Ṣaṣṭhī-tatpuruṣa ‘lokasya pitāmahaḥ’

Speaker

Narrator (frame not explicit)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Puṣkarāvartakā (āvarta-traya)

Type: kund

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A serene river reach in Prabhāsa where three distinct whirlpools form—elder, middle, younger—while Brahmā (four-faced) stands on a lotus, performing a naming gesture as sages witness.

Characters & Entities

• Brahmā
• Āvarta (whirlpool/eddy)
• River (nadī)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Holy places are marked by distinctive sacred features, and their naming by divine authority establishes their tīrtha-status.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The river-spot characterized by three āvartas, which becomes known as Puṣkarāvartakā.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly; this is the origin and identification of the tīrtha where rites will yield merit.