Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 169

Devanagari script

सैषा धात्री विधात्री च धरणी च वसुन्धरा । दुग्धा हितार्थं लोकानां पृथुना इति नः श्रुतम्

Transliteration

saiṣā dhātrī vidhātrī ca dharaṇī ca vasundharā | dugdhā hitārthaṃ lokānāṃ pṛthunā iti naḥ śrutam

Translation

Sie ist wahrlich Dhātrī und Vidhātrī, Dharaṇī und Vasundharā. Wir haben gehört, dass Pṛthu sie zum Wohle der Welten gemolken hat.

Word by Word

• सा: she, that (Earth)
• सा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• एषा: this (one)
• एषा: Apposition (समानाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• धात्री: nurse, sustainer
• धात्री: Apposition (समानाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धात्री (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• विधात्री: creator, arranger
• विधात्री: Apposition (समानाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विधात्री (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

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

• धरणी: the bearer (Earth)
• धरणी: Apposition (समानाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धरणी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

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

• वसुन्धरा: Earth
• वसुन्धरा: Apposition (समानाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वसुन्धरा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• दुग्धा: was milked
• दुग्धा: Kriya (Predicate participle/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दुह् (धातु) + क्त (प्रत्यय)
• Form: कृदन्त (past passive participle/क्त), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• हितार्थम्: for the welfare/purpose
• हितार्थम्: Prayojana (Purpose/प्रयोजन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हित (प्रातिपदिक) + अर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; प्रयोजनार्थक (purpose)

• लोकानाम्: of the worlds/people
• लोकानाम्: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: लोक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), बहुवचन

• पृथुना: by Pṛthu
• पृथुना: Karana/Karta-instrumental (Agent expressed in instr./कर्तृ-तृतीया)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पृथु (प्रातिपदिक; नाम)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन

• इति: thus
• इति: Quotation marker (इति)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इति (अव्यय)
• Form: उद्धरण/वाक्यसमाप्तिबोधक (quotative particle)

• नः: of us / to us
• नः: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive/‘of us’)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6th/Genitive) वा चतुर्थी (4th/Dative), बहुवचन; एन्क्लिटिक रूप

• श्रुतम्: has been heard
• श्रुतम्: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: श्रु (धातु) + क्त (प्रत्यय)
• Form: कृदन्त (past passive participle/क्त), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; ‘श्रुतम्’ = ‘heard/known’

Speaker

Skanda (deduced from Prabhāsakṣetra-māhātmya narration style)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra (contextual frame; verse itself praises Bhūmi)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Personified Earth as a goddess-cow, gentle and vast, being ‘milked’ by King Pṛthu for the welfare of beings; cosmic epithets (Dhātrī, Vidhātrī) inscribed as aura-text around her.

Characters & Entities

• Pṛthu
• Dhātrī
• Vidhātrī
• Dharaṇī
• Vasundharā

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

True kingship and governance are defined by lokahita—drawing resources to sustain all beings, not for selfish gain.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa-kṣetra’s māhātmya frames this teaching, linking cosmic order and righteous rule to the sanctity of the sacred land.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; the verse functions as bhūmi-stuti and a rāja-dharma principle.