Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 2

Devanagari script

कथमर्कस्थलो भूतः प्रभासक्षेत्रभूषणः । पूजनीयो महादेवः सम्यग्यात्राफलेप्सुभिः

Transliteration

kathamarkasthalo bhūtaḥ prabhāsakṣetrabhūṣaṇaḥ | pūjanīyo mahādevaḥ samyagyātrāphalepsubhiḥ

Translation

Wie wurde Mahādeva zu „Arkasthala“, dem Schmuck des heiligen Kṣetra von Prabhāsa, und warum soll er von denen verehrt werden, die die wahre Frucht einer recht vollzogenen Pilgerfahrt begehren?

Word by Word

• katham: how
• katham: Kriya-viśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: katham (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रश्नार्थ-अव्यय (interrogative adverb)

• arka-sthalaḥ: (the) Arka-sthala (Sun’s place)
• arka-sthalaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: arka (प्रातिपदिक) + sthala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; अर्कस्य स्थलः (place of the Sun)

• bhūtaḥ: became
• bhūtaḥ: Kriya-samānādhikaraṇa (समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bhū (धातु) → bhūta (कृदन्त)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; ‘become’

• prabhāsa-kṣetra-bhūṣaṇaḥ: the ornament of Prabhāsa-kṣetra
• prabhāsa-kṣetra-bhūṣaṇaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prabhāsa (प्रातिपदिक) + kṣetra (प्रातिपदिक) + bhūṣaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; प्रभासक्षेत्रस्य भूषणः (ornament of Prabhāsa-kṣetra)

• pūjanīyaḥ: worthy of worship
• pūjanīyaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pūj (धातु) → pūjanīya (कृदन्त)
• Form: अनीयर्-प्रत्ययान्त (gerundive), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; ‘to be worshipped’

• mahādevaḥ: Mahādeva
• mahādevaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + deva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; महान् देवः

• samyak: properly
• samyak: Kriya-viśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: samyak (अव्यय)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषण-अव्यय (properly)

• yātrā-phala-epsubhiḥ: by those desiring the fruit of pilgrimage
• yātrā-phala-epsubhiḥ: Karana (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yātrā (प्रातिपदिक) + phala (प्रातिपदिक) + ipsu (कृदन्त; √āp/√īps)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; यात्रायाः फलम् इच्छन्ति ये (desirous of the fruit of pilgrimage)

Speaker

Devī (Pārvatī) to Īśvara (Śiva)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Arkasthala (within Prabhāsa-kṣetra)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Mahādeva

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Devī asks how Mahādeva became Arkasthala, the jewel of Prabhāsa, and why pilgrims must worship him for complete yātrā-fruit; imagery blends Śiva-linga with a radiant solar disc and coastal sacred landscape.

Characters & Entities

• Prabhāsa-kṣetra
• Mahādeva
• Arkasthala

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Pilgrimage bears its full fruit when joined with devotion and proper worship of Śiva at the sanctified site.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa-kṣetra, with focus on Arkasthala as a revered spot within that sacred field.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Worship (pūjā) of Mahādeva by pilgrims seeking the complete merit of yātrā.