Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 33

Devanagari script

गृहीत्वा शिवसंस्कारं नरो भ्राम्यति भूतले । द्रष्टुं तीर्थान्यनेकानि पुण्यान्यायतनानि च

Transliteration

gṛhītvā śivasaṃskāraṃ naro bhrāmyati bhūtale | draṣṭuṃ tīrthānyanekāni puṇyānyāyatanāni ca

Translation

Nachdem er die Weihe und Übung Śivas empfangen hat, wandert der Mensch über die Erde, um viele Tīrthas und ebenso zahlreiche heilige, verdienstvolle Heiligtümer zu schauen.

Word by Word

• गृहीत्वा: having received
• गृहीत्वा: Kriya (क्रिया; पूर्वक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ग्रह् (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund): “having taken/received”

• शिवसंस्कारम्: Śiva’s rite/consecration
• शिवसंस्कारम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शिव + संस्कार (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समासः (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः: शिवस्य संस्कारः)

• नरः: a man
• नरः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• भ्राम्यति: wanders
• भ्राम्यति: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भ्रम् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार, प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• भूतले: on the earth’s surface
• भूतले: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भूतल (प्रातिपदिक; भू + तल)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समासः

• द्रष्टुम्: to see
• द्रष्टुम्: Prayojana (प्रयोजन; purpose)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दृश् (धातु)
• Form: तुमुन्-प्रत्ययान्त (infinitive): “to see”

• तीर्थानि: pilgrimage places
• तीर्थानि: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• अनेकानि: many
• अनेकानि: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अनेक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषण (qualifying तीर्थानि)

• पुण्यानि: holy/meritorious
• पुण्यानि: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पुण्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषण (qualifying आयतनानि)

• आयतनानि: abodes/shrines
• आयतनानि: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: आयतन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-निपात

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) (deduced from Prabhāsa Khaṇḍa māhātmya narration style)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Vastrāpatha-kṣetra (Prabhāsa region)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A Śaiva pilgrim, marked by initiation signs (tripuṇḍra, rudrākṣa), sets out across varied landscapes—rivers, ghāṭas, temples—seeking darśana of many tīrthas and holy shrines.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva
• Tīrthas
• Āyatanas (shrines)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Śaiva consecration is linked to sacred travel: the devotee’s life becomes a pilgrimage of darśana—seeking holy places to deepen dharma and devotion.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse sits in the Vastrāpatha-kṣetra-māhātmya (Prabhāsa Khaṇḍa) while also endorsing a wider tīrtha-circuit of many sacred sites.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Receiving śiva-saṃskāra (a Śaiva consecration/observance) and undertaking tīrtha-darśana (visiting tīrthas and shrines).