Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 69

Devanagari script

न विजानाम्यहं तथ्यं कस्यायं वीर्यसंभवः । तस्मात्कथय देवेश मम ते निश्चितं वचः

Transliteration

na vijānāmyahaṃ tathyaṃ kasyāyaṃ vīryasaṃbhavaḥ | tasmātkathaya deveśa mama te niścitaṃ vacaḥ

Translation

„Ich kenne die Wahrheit nicht: Aus wessen Kraft ist dieses Kind hervorgegangen? Darum, o Herr der Götter, sprich zu mir dein gewisses, entscheidendes Wort.“

Word by Word

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (Negation/निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-निपात

• vijānāmi: I know
• vijānāmi: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi-√jñā (धातु)
• Form: लट् (present), उत्तमपुरुष (1st), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

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

• tathyam: the truth
• tathyam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tathya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन

• kasya: of whom / whose
• kasya: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6th/genitive), एकवचन; interrogative pronoun

• ayam: this (one)
• ayam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; demonstrative

• vīrya-saṃbhavaḥ: born from semen/virility
• vīrya-saṃbhavaḥ: Karta (Subject complement/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vīrya (प्रातिपदिक) + saṃbhava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समास: वीर्यसंभवः = वीर्यात्/वीर्यस्य सम्भवः (तत्पुरुष; source/connection); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• tasmāt: therefore
• tasmāt: Hetu (Cause/हेतु)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तस्मात् (ablatival adverbial), पञ्चमी-अर्थे (from that/therefore)

• kathaya: tell
• kathaya: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kath (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (imperative), मध्यमपुरुष (2nd), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• deveśa: O Lord of gods
• deveśa: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deveśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th), एकवचन

• mama: my
• mama: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6th), एकवचन

• te: your
• te: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tvad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6th), एकवचन; enclitic

• niścitam: certain, definite
• niścitam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: niścita (प्रातिपदिक; √ci + nis + kta)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; विशेषण—'certain' (qualifying vacaḥ/statement)

• vacaḥ: word, statement
• vacaḥ: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vacas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन (vacas- stem)

Speaker

The woman (contextually Subhadrā in the ensuing verses)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Frame-audience

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A worried mother-figure speaks frankly: ‘I do not know the truth’; she implores the Lord of gods for a decisive answer about the child’s origin.

Characters & Entities

• Deveśa (Lord of gods)
• Janārdana
• Prabhāsakṣetra

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

When truth is unclear, dharmic conduct is to seek divine clarification with humility and devotion.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsakṣetra, where divine revelation and sacred narrative unfold as part of its māhātmya.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No formal rite; it models prayerful inquiry directed to the deity.