Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 85

Devanagari script

विज्ञेया मानुषा वत्स गर्भस्थास्ते महीतले । द्वारवत्यां न यैर्देवो दृष्टः कंसनिषूदनः

Transliteration

vijñeyā mānuṣā vatsa garbhasthāste mahītale | dvāravatyāṃ na yairdevo dṛṣṭaḥ kaṃsaniṣūdanaḥ

Translation

O dear one, know that those who have not beheld in Dvāravatī (Dvārakā) the God who slew Kaṃsa are as though still in the womb upon this earth, not yet truly born.

Word by Word

• vijñeyāḥ: should be known (as)
• vijñeyāḥ: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi-jñā (धातु) → vijñeya (कृदन्त, तव्यत्-प्रत्यय)
• Form: तव्यत् (Gerundive/obligatory), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विधेयार्थे ‘विज्ञेयाḥ’ = ‘are to be known/should be understood’

• mānuṣāḥ: men; humans
• mānuṣāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mānuṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन (Plural)

• vatsa: O child
• vatsa: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vatsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), सम्बोधन (Vocative), एकवचन (Singular)

• garbha-sthāḥ: dwelling in the womb; unborn
• garbha-sthāḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: garbha (प्रातिपदिक) + stha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन (Plural)

• te: they
• te: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; सर्वनाम

• mahī-tale: on the earth’s surface
• mahī-tale: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahī (प्रातिपदिक) + tala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन (Singular)

• dvāravatyām: in Dvāravatī (Dvārakā)
• dvāravatyām: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvāravatī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन (Singular)

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध (Negation particle)

• yaiḥ: by whom
• yaiḥ: Karana (Agent in passive/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), बहुवचन (Plural), सर्वनाम

• devaḥ: the Lord; the god
• devaḥ: Karma (Object in passive/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular)

• dṛṣṭaḥ: seen
• dṛṣṭaḥ: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dṛś (धातु) → dṛṣṭa (कृदन्त, क्त-प्रत्यय)
• Form: क्त (Past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्मणि प्रयोगे ‘दृष्टः’ = ‘was seen’

• kaṃsa-niṣūdanaḥ: the slayer of Kaṃsa (Kṛṣṇa)
• kaṃsa-niṣūdanaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kaṃsa (प्रातिपदिक) + niṣūdana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); देवस्य विशेषण-नाम

Speaker

Unknown (instructor addressing a listener as vatsa)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Dvāravatī (Dvārakā)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Vatsa (a dear interlocutor; likely a disciple/king/sage in the narrative frame)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A teacher-like speaker addressing a ‘vatsa’ (dear one), pointing toward Dvārakā where Kṛṣṇa stands as Kaṃsa-slayer; behind, shadowy figures remain ‘garbhastha’ as a metaphor for unfulfilled life.

Characters & Entities

• Dvāravatī (Dvārakā)
• Kṛṣṇa
• Kaṃsa

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Human life is portrayed as spiritually incomplete without darśana of the Lord in His celebrated tīrtha—here, Kṛṣṇa in Dvārakā.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Dvāravatī/Dvārakā, the sacred city of Kṛṣṇa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Darśana (sacred seeing) of Kṛṣṇa in Dvārakā; no additional rite is specified in this verse.