Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 5

Devanagari script

स्त्रीसहस्रैर्वृतो नित्यं क्रीडते देवव द्दिवि

Transliteration

strīsahasrairvṛto nityaṃ krīḍate devava ddivi

Translation

Stets von tausend himmlischen Jungfrauen umgeben, weilt er spielend im Himmel wie ein Gott.

Word by Word

• strī-sahasraiḥ: by thousands of women
• strī-sahasraiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: strī (प्रातिपदिक) + sahasra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (sahasra), तृतीया-विभक्ति (3rd/Instrumental), बहुवचन; स्त्रीणां सहस्रैः = 'by thousands of women'

• vṛtaḥ: surrounded
• vṛtaḥ: Karta (Subject complement/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vṛ (धातु)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त-प्रत्यय, past passive participle); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• nityam: always
• nityam: Sambandha (Adverbial/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: nitya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषणरूपेण अव्ययीभूतम् (adverbial accusative)

• krīḍate: plays; sports
• krīḍate: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: krīḍ (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथम-पुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; आत्मनेपद

• deva-vat: like a god
• deva-vat: Sambandha (Manner/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक) + vat (वत्-प्रत्यय)
• Form: उपमानवाचक-अव्यय (indeclinable of comparison: 'like a god')

• divi: in heaven
• divi: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: div (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (7th/Locative), एकवचन

Speaker

Śiva (Īśvara)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Bhairaveśvara/Mahākuṇḍa (Prabhāsa)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Mahādevī

Visual Art Cues

Scene: In Indra-like heaven, the meritorious pilgrim enjoys divine play, surrounded by a thousand apsaras; jeweled halls, cloud terraces, and celestial gardens frame the scene.

Characters & Entities

• divi (heaven)
• deva-vat

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Purāṇic māhātmyas often describe vivid heavenly rewards to motivate pilgrimage, worship, and disciplined devotion.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The results are tied to the Bhairaveśvara/Brahmakuṇḍa tīrtha context of Prabhāsakṣetra.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Implicitly, the previously stated snāna and pañcopacāra-pūjā; this verse continues the reward-description.