Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 10

Devanagari script

समुद्रान्तेऽगमद्दिव्यां पुरीं महिषपालिताम् । अर्चितो हि मुनिस्तेन महिषेण महात्मना

Transliteration

samudrānte'gamaddivyāṃ purīṃ mahiṣapālitām | arcito hi munistena mahiṣeṇa mahātmanā

Translation

Am Rand des Ozeans gelangte er in eine göttliche Stadt, die von Mahiṣa beherrscht wurde. Dort wurde der Weise wahrlich von jenem großherzigen Mahiṣa geehrt.

Word by Word

• samudra-ante: at the seashore
• samudra-ante: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: samudra (प्रातिपदिक) + anta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (समुद्रस्य अन्तः)

• agamat: went
• agamat: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: gam (धातु)
• Form: लङ्-लकार (imperfect/past), प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• divyām: divine
• divyām: Karma (Object-qualifier/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: divya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण (पुरीम्)

• purīm: city
• purīm: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: purī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• mahiṣa-pālitām: ruled/protected by Mahiṣa
• mahiṣa-pālitām: Karma (Object-qualifier/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahiṣa (प्रातिपदिक) + pālita (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; पाल्-धातु, क्त)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; तृतीया/षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषार्थ (महिषेण/महिषस्य पालिता) विशेषण (पुरीम्)

• arcitaḥ: was honored
• arcitaḥ: Karta (Grammatical subject in passive/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: arc (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्मणि-प्रयोगार्थ (was honored)

• hi: indeed
• hi: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (emphatic particle)

• muniḥ: the sage
• muniḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: muni (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• tena: by him
• tena: Karana (Agent-instrument in passive/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसक, तृतीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• mahiṣeṇa: by Mahiṣa
• mahiṣeṇa: Karana (Agent in passive/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahiṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; तेन इत्यस्य विशेषण/अप्पोज़िशन

• mahātmanā: by the great-souled one
• mahātmanā: Karana (Qualifier/करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahātman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण (महिṣeṇa)

Speaker

Narrator (Purāṇic storyteller voice)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Samudrānta-Prabhāsa (sea-edge zone)

Type: ghat

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Devī (implied by earlier address)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Nārada arrives at a luminous coastal city; the ruler Mahiṣa receives him with reverence—offering arghya and a seat—while the ocean glitters behind city walls and temple spires.

Characters & Entities

• Nārada
• Mahiṣa (Mahiṣāsura)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Even amidst asuric power, the sanctity of a muni is recognized—honoring sages is a marker of dharma and brings consequence in the narrative.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The wider Prabhāsa coastal sacred zone (samudrānta) frames the episode; the māhātmya emphasizes holiness tied to place and event.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Hospitality and honoring a sage (arcanā/satkāra) is implied rather than formally prescribed.