Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 16

Devanagari script

तस्माद्यन्मम बालेय त्वत्पित्रांऽबु करे महत् । दत्तं तेनास्य सुतले कल्पं यावद्वसिष्यति

Transliteration

tasmādyanmama bāleya tvatpitrāṃ'bu kare mahat | dattaṃ tenāsya sutale kalpaṃ yāvadvasiṣyati

Translation

Darum, o geliebtes Kind: Weil dein Vater mir mit der Wasserspende eine große Gabe in die Hände legte, wird er in Sutala wohnen, solange ein Kalpa währt.

Word by Word

• tasmāt: therefore, from that
• tasmāt: Hetu/Apādāna (Cause/Ablative/हेतु-अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/ablative), एकवचन; 'तस्मात्' = therefore/from that

• yat: that which
• yat: Sambandha (Relative connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम (relative), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; correlates with 'tena'

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

• bāleya: O Bāleya
• bāleya: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bāleya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/vocative), एकवचन; patronymic/epithet (e.g., 'son of Bali')

• tvat-pitrā: by your father
• tvat-pitrā: Kartṛ-karaṇa (Agent/instrument in passive/कर्तृ-करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tvad (प्रातिपदिक) + pitṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/instrumental), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (षष्ठी): 'तव पिता' = by your father

• ambu: water
• ambu: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ambu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/accusative), एकवचन; 'अम्बु' = water

• kare: in (his) hand
• kare: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/locative), एकवचन; 'करे' = in the hand

• mahat: great, abundant
• mahat: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: विशेषण (adjective), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/accusative), एकवचन; qualifies 'ambu' (great/abundant)

• dattam: given
• dattam: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa / Predicative (Predicate participle/विधेय)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dā (दा धातु) → datta (कृदन्त)
• Form: कृदन्त (भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त/past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; 'दत्तम्' = given

• tena: thereby, by that
• tena: Hetu/Karaṇa (Cause/Instrument/हेतु-करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/instrumental), एकवचन; 'तेन' = by that/thereby

• asya: of him
• asya: Ṣaṣṭhī-sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/genitive), एकवचन; 'अस्य' = of him

• sutale: in Sutala
• sutale: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sutala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/locative), एकवचन; 'सुतले' = in Sutala (netherworld)

• kalpam: (for) a kalpa
• kalpam: Kāla-adhikaraṇa (Time extent/कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kalpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/accusative), एकवचन; duration 'for a kalpa'

• yāvat: as long as
• yāvat: Kāla-sambandha (Temporal correlator/कालसम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yāvat (अव्यय/प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (correlative adverb): 'यावत्' = as long as/until

• vasiṣyati: will dwell, will remain
• vasiṣyati: Kriyā (Main verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vas (वस् धातु)
• Form: लृट् (simple future), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

Speaker

Janārdana / Trivikrama (Viṣṇu)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Vastrāpatha-kṣetra (within Prabhāsa)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Bāṇa (Bali’s son)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A devotee-king’s gift is placed into the Lord’s hand with a water libation; the cosmic consequence is shown as Bali’s destined residence in luminous Sutala beneath the worlds.

Characters & Entities

• Bali
• Bāṇa
• Sutala
• Kalpa
• Water-offering (udaka)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Properly given dāna—sealed with the water-offering—bears enduring fruit; dharmic generosity becomes a divine guarantee.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Though the verse mentions Sutala (nether realm), it is taught within Prabhāsa’s Vastrāpathakṣetra-māhātmya, reinforcing the Purāṇic link between place-glory and dharma.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

The water-offering (udaka) as a formal act completing a gift—an important dharmic procedure in dāna and vow-fulfillment.