Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 2

Devanagari script

यदा गंगा समाहूता विष्णुना प्रभविष्णुना । अन्तकालेऽभिषेकार्थं स्वकायस्य वरानने

Transliteration

yadā gaṃgā samāhūtā viṣṇunā prabhaviṣṇunā | antakāle'bhiṣekārthaṃ svakāyasya varānane

Translation

O Göttin mit schönem Antlitz, als Gaṅgā von Viṣṇu—dem allgegenwärtigen Herrn—zur letzten Stunde gerufen wurde, um zur Abhiṣeka, zur heiligen Salbung Seines eigenen göttlichen Leibes, zu dienen,

Word by Word

• yadā: when
• yadā: Sambandha (Temporal connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yadā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक सम्बन्धबोधक (when)

• gaṅgā: Gaṅgā
• gaṅgā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gaṅgā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• samāhūtā: was summoned/called
• samāhūtā: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: āhū (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (PPP) with उपसर्ग सम्+आ; स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• viṣṇunā: by Viṣṇu
• viṣṇunā: Karana (Agent-instrument in passive/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viṣṇu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (Instrumental), एकवचन

• prabhaviṣṇunā: by Lord Viṣṇu
• prabhaviṣṇunā: Karana (Apposition to viṣṇunā)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prabhu (प्रातिपदिक) + viṣṇu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन; कर्मधारय (प्रभुः सन् विष्णुः)

• anta-kāle: at the final time (at death)
• anta-kāle: Adhikarana (Temporal/कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: anta (प्रातिपदिक) + kāla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष (अन्ते कालः/अन्तकाले = at the final time)

• abhiṣeka-artham: for the purpose of anointing
• abhiṣeka-artham: Prayojana (Purpose/प्रयोजन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: abhiṣeka (प्रातिपदिक) + artha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; प्रयोजनार्थे द्वितीया; तत्पुरुष (अभिषेकस्य अर्थम्)

• sva-kāyasya: of his own body
• sva-kāyasya: Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sva (प्रातिपदिक) + kāya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (Genitive), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष (स्वस्य कायः)

• vara-ānane: O fair-faced one
• vara-ānane: Sambodhana (Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vara (प्रातिपदिक) + ānana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, एकवचन; कर्मधारय (वरम् आननं यस्याः)

Speaker

Śiva (deduced from adjacent dialogue style; explicit in next chapter)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra (Gaṅgā’s arrival episode)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Mahādevī (Pārvatī)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Viṣṇu, at a liminal ‘final hour,’ summons Gaṅgā for abhiṣeka of his divine body; Gaṅgā appears as a radiant river-goddess responding to the call, with Prabhāsa’s coastal horizon implied.

Characters & Entities

• Gaṅgā
• Viṣṇu

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Divine tīrthas arise through purposeful acts of the gods; sacred waters and sacred forms cooperate to grant purification and sanctity to a place.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa Kṣetra, in the Prabhāsakṣetramāhātmya context, leading into the Gaṅgeśvara narrative.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Abhiṣeka (ritual anointing) is indicated as the sacred act connected with Gaṅgā’s summoning.