Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 45

Devanagari script

प्रतिष्ठार्थं तु लिंगस्य आनीतश्चाष्टवार्षिकः । बालरूपी तदा तेन सोमनाथेति कीर्तितम्

Transliteration

pratiṣṭhārthaṃ tu liṃgasya ānītaścāṣṭavārṣikaḥ | bālarūpī tadā tena somanātheti kīrtitam

Translation

„Zur Weihe des Liṅga wurde ein achtjähriges Kind herbeigebracht; in kindlicher Gestalt verkündete er ihn damals als ‚Somnātha‘.“

Word by Word

• pratiṣṭhārtham: for (the) establishment-purpose
• pratiṣṭhārtham: Prayojana (Purpose/प्रयोजन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pratiṣṭhā + artha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन; प्रतिष्ठा-अर्थ (चतुर्थी/षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषार्थे: 'for the purpose of establishment')

• tu: indeed/but
• tu: Sambandha (Discourse particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारण/विरोध-अव्यय (particle)

• liṅgasya: of the liṅga
• liṅgasya: Sambandha (Possessor/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: liṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (Genitive/6th), एकवचन

• ānītaḥ: was brought
• ānītaḥ: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ā-nīta (कृदन्त; √nī)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्मणि-प्रयोग

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय

• aṣṭavārṣikaḥ: eight-year-old
• aṣṭavārṣikaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: aṣṭa + vārṣika (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; द्विगु-समास: 'eight-years-old'

• bālarūpī: child-formed
• bālarūpī: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bāla + rūpin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; बाल-रूपी (तत्पुरुष: 'having the form of a child')

• tadā: then
• tadā: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण-काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tadā (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय

• tena: by him/thereby
• tena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental/3rd), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• somanātha: Somanātha
• somanātha: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: soma + nātha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; सोम-नाथ (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: 'lord of Soma')

• iti: thus
• iti: Sambandha (Quotation marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (अव्यय)
• Form: उद्धरण-अव्यय

• kīrtitam: was proclaimed/called
• kīrtitam: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kīrtita (कृदन्त; √kīrt)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; कर्मणि-प्रयोग

Speaker

Narrator (contextual Purāṇic narrator within Prabhāsakṣetramāhātmya; exact speaker not explicit in snippet)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Somnātha

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A solemn consecration scene: priests and sages prepare the liṅga; an eight-year-old child, radiant and composed, declares ‘Somnātha’; lamps, kalashas, bilva leaves, and the coastal temple setting frame the moment.

Characters & Entities

• Liṅga
• Somnātha

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Proper consecration (pratiṣṭhā) and sacred naming connect a deity’s presence to a specific holy geography, making worship tangible for devotees.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Somnātha at Prabhāsa-kṣetra.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Pratiṣṭhā (ritual installation/consecration) of the liṅga is referenced.