Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 81

Devanagari script

कृतस्मरस्यापरतो धन्वंतरशतत्रये । लिंगं महाप्रभावं च स्वयंभूतं व्यवस्थितम्

Transliteration

kṛtasmarasyāparato dhanvaṃtaraśatatraye | liṃgaṃ mahāprabhāvaṃ ca svayaṃbhūtaṃ vyavasthitam

Translation

Jenseits des Ortes namens Kṛtasmarā, in einer Entfernung von dreihundert Dhanvantaras, steht ein Liṅga von großer Macht, svayambhū, selbstoffenbart, dort fest gegründet.

Word by Word

• कृतस्मरस्य: of Kṛtasmar(a) (a named place/being)
• कृतस्मरस्य: Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कृत (कृ धातु, क्त) + स्मर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन; ‘कृतः स्मरः येन’ इति (name/epithet: Kṛtasmar(a))

• अपरतः: beyond, to the further side
• अपरतः: Deśa-adhikaraṇa (Spatial adjunct)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपरतः (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक अव्यय (spatial adverb: on the farther side/after)

• धन्वन्तर-शत-त्रये: at (a distance of) three hundred dhanvantaras
• धन्वन्तर-शत-त्रये: Adhikaraṇa (Measure/location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धन्वन्तर (प्रातिपदिक) + शत (प्रातिपदिक) + त्रय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; द्विगुसमासः—‘धन्वन्तराणां शतानां त्रये’ (in a distance of three hundred dhanvantaras)

• लिङ्गम्: liṅga (Śiva-emblem)
• लिङ्गम्: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: लिङ्ग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन (here: प्रथमा as subject)

• महाप्रभावम्: of great power
• महाप्रभावम्: Karta-samānādhikaraṇa (Qualifier of subject)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महा + प्रभाव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण (to लिङ्गम्)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक निपात (conjunction)

• स्वयंभूतम्: self-manifested
• स्वयंभूतम्: Karta-samānādhikaraṇa (Qualifier of subject)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स्वयम् (अव्यय) + भूत (भू धातु, क्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण (to लिङ्गम्)

• व्यवस्थितम्: established, situated
• व्यवस्थितम्: Karta-samānādhikaraṇa (Predicate/qualifier of subject)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वि + अव + स्था (धातु)
• Form: क्त (past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘स्थितम्’ अर्थे (standing/established)

Speaker

Dakṣa

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Sparśa-liṅga (introduced by description; named explicitly next verses)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Soma

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A small yet radiant liṅga stands in the earth, hinted at from afar as Soma and Dakṣa traverse dunes and scrub; a sense of discovery builds as the svayaṃbhū presence is revealed.

Characters & Entities

• Kṛtasmarā (place/mountain)
• Svayaṃbhū Liṅga

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

A svayaṃbhū (self-manifest) liṅga is presented as inherently powerful, making the pilgrimage landscape itself a revelation of Śiva.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

A self-manifest Liṅga located beyond Kṛtasmarā within the Prabhāsa-kṣetra sacred geography.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct ritual is prescribed; the verse functions as a tīrtha locator and praise of the liṅga’s potency.