Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 38

Devanagari script

पिहितोऽहं तु तत्रैव प्रभासे तीर्थ उत्तमे । शिवरात्रिप्रभावेन तज्जातिस्मरतां गतः

Transliteration

pihito'haṃ tu tatraiva prabhāse tīrtha uttame | śivarātriprabhāvena tajjātismaratāṃ gataḥ

Translation

So wurde ich dort in Prabhāsa, dem vortrefflichsten Pilgerort, begraben, und durch die Kraft von Śivarātri erlangte ich die Erinnerung an meine frühere Geburt.

Word by Word

• pihitaḥ: covered, concealed
• pihitaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pi√dhā (धातु) → pihita (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (क्त), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; past passive participle, masculine nominative singular

• aham: I
• aham: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रथमा (1st/nominative), एकवचन; pronoun nominative singular

• tu: but, indeed
• tu: Sambandha (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (contrastive particle)

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय (locative adverb)

• eva: just, indeed
• eva: Sambandha (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (emphatic particle)

• prabhāse: in Prabhāsa
• prabhāse: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prabhāsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/locative), एकवचन; masculine locative singular (place-name)

• tīrthe: at the sacred ford/place
• tīrthe: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tīrtha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/locative), एकवचन; neuter locative singular

• uttame: excellent, best
• uttame: Visheshana (Adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: uttama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/locative), एकवचन; neuter locative singular; agrees with tīrthe

• śivarātriprabhāvena: by the power of Śivarātri
• śivarātriprabhāvena: Karana (Instrument/Cause/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śivarātri + prabhāva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/instrumental), एकवचन; masculine instrumental singular; समासः—षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (śivarātryāḥ prabhāvaḥ)

• tajjātismaratām: of those who remember former births
• tajjātismaratām: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad + jāti-smara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/genitive), बहुवचन; masculine genitive plural; समासः—तत्पुरुष (jātiṃ smarati iti jātismara; tad- = ‘that’)

• gataḥ: became, attained
• gataḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √gam (धातु) → gata (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (क्त), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; used predicatively ‘became/attained’; past participle, masc nom sg

Speaker

Unspecified narrator within Prabhāsakṣetra Māhātmya (contextual narrator)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: ‘Priye’ (beloved addressee)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A buried figure beneath earth at Prabhāsa; above, the night of Śivarātri with devotees keeping vigil, lamps, bilva leaves, and a distant Śiva-liṅga shrine; a subtle aura indicating awakening of memory within the buried one.

Characters & Entities

• Prabhāsa
• Śivarātri

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Śivarātri, especially when connected with a great tīrtha like Prabhāsa, is portrayed as awakening deep spiritual memory and inner transformation.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa tīrtha (tīrtha uttama), within the Prabhāsakṣetra Māhātmya framework.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Śivarātri observance is implied as the causal spiritual force; the verse highlights its prabhāva (efficacy).