Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 157

Devanagari script

प्रविष्टा भयसंत्रस्ताः पातालं जीवितैषिणः । ततो देव गणाः सर्वे वसवो मरुतोऽश्विनौ

Transliteration

praviṣṭā bhayasaṃtrastāḥ pātālaṃ jīvitaiṣiṇaḥ | tato deva gaṇāḥ sarve vasavo maruto'śvinau

Translation

Terrified and longing only to live, they entered Pātāla. Then all the hosts of gods—the Vasus, the Maruts, and the two Aśvins—gathered together.

Word by Word

• praviṣṭāḥ: entered
• praviṣṭāḥ: Karta (Subject-qualifier/कर्तृविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pra-√viś (धातु)
• Form: क्त (past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; कर्तृवाच्ये विशेषण (used adjectivally: ‘having entered’)

• bhaya-saṃtrastāḥ: terrified by fear
• bhaya-saṃtrastāḥ: Karta (Subject-qualifier/कर्तृविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bhaya (प्रातिपदिक) + saṃtrasta (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक, saṃ-√tras ‘to tremble’)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (cause: ‘by fear’), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• pātālam: to Pātāla (netherworld)
• pātālam: Karma (Goal/Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pātāla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• jīvita-eṣiṇaḥ: seeking to preserve their lives
• jīvita-eṣiṇaḥ: Karta (Subject-qualifier/कर्तृविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: jīvita (प्रातिपदिक) + eṣin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (object of desire: ‘seeking life’), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• tataḥ: then
• tataḥ: Adhikarana (Context/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय, अनुक्रमवाचक (then)

• deva-gaṇāḥ: the groups of gods
• deva-gaṇāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक) + gaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: ‘group of gods’), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• sarve: all
• sarve: Karta (Subject-qualifier/कर्तृविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषण

• vasavaḥ: the Vasus
• vasavaḥ: Karta (Apposition/कर्ता-समनाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vasu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• marutaḥ: the Maruts
• marutaḥ: Karta (Apposition/कर्ता-समनाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: marut (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• aśvinau: the Aśvins (twin gods)
• aśvinau: Karta (Apposition/कर्ता-समनाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: aśvin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, द्विवचन (dual)

Speaker

Narrator (Purāṇic narrator; likely Sūta-style narration within Prabhāsa-khaṇḍa)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Arbuda-kṣetra (contextual)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Kingly audience (contextual)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Daityas vanish into a dark fissure leading to Pātāla; above, the sky clears as Vasus, Maruts, and the twin Aśvins assemble in orderly ranks, turning toward Devī in reverence.

Characters & Entities

• Pātāla
• Vasus
• Maruts
• Aśvins

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

When adharma collapses, divine order reasserts itself and the gods reunite in gratitude and reverence.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Arbuda/Varaparvata, where the gods’ gathering reinforces the sanctity of the mountain-region.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it narrates the aftermath of victory and the assembly of divine beings.