Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 55

Devanagari script

रुक्मिण्याः पूर्वतश्चैव तप्ततोयाच्च पश्चिमे । पूर्वपश्चिममानोऽयं प्रभासस्य प्रकीर्त्तितः

Transliteration

rukmiṇyāḥ pūrvataścaiva taptatoyācca paścime | pūrvapaścimamāno'yaṃ prabhāsasya prakīrttitaḥ

Translation

To the east lies the tīrtha of Rukmiṇī, and to the west lies the tīrtha called Taptatoya. Thus is proclaimed the east–west measure of Prabhāsa.

Word by Word

• rukmiṇyāḥ: from/of Rukmiṇī (place/temple)
• rukmiṇyāḥ: Apadana/Reference (Ablative sense/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rukmiṇī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी/पञ्चमी (6th/5th Gen/Abl), एकवचन (Singular)

• pūrvataḥ: on the eastern side
• pūrvataḥ: Adhikarana/Directional (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: pūrvataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (directional adverb: 'to the east/from the east side')

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha/Connector (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय (conjunction)

• eva: indeed
• eva: Sambandha/Emphasis (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारणार्थक अव्यय (emphasis)

• taptatoyāt: from Taptatoya (hot-water spring/place)
• taptatoyāt: Apadana (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tapta + toya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/Ablative), एकवचन (Singular); कर्मधारय (tapta-toya = 'hot water')

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha/Connector (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय (conjunction)

• paścime: in the west
• paścime: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: paścima (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन (Singular); दिक्शब्द-प्रयोग (in the west)

• pūrvapaścimamānaḥ: the east-to-west extent
• pūrvapaścimamānaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pūrva + paścima + māna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); दिक्-द्वन्द्व (pūrva-paścima = east-west) + māna ('measure/extent')

• ayam: this
• ayam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); सर्वनाम

• prabhāsasya: of Prabhāsa
• prabhāsasya: Shashthi-Sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठī-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prabhāsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन (Singular)

• prakīrttitaḥ: is proclaimed/declared
• prakīrttitaḥ: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra-kīrt (धातु) + kta (कृत् प्रत्यय)
• Form: कृदन्त (past passive participle/क्त), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); कर्मणि प्रयोगार्थ ('is proclaimed')

Speaker

Śiva (addressing Devī)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra (east–west between Rukmiṇī and Taptatoya)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Mahādevī (addressed)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A horizontal sacred panorama: eastern side marked by a shrine or waterbody named Rukmiṇī; western side marked by a steaming/‘hot-water’ tīrtha named Taptatoya; the Prabhāsa field stretches between them with pilgrims traversing.

Characters & Entities

• Rukmiṇī-tīrtha
• Taptatoya-tīrtha
• Prabhāsa-kṣetra

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sacred places are not random; their divinely stated boundaries guide pilgrimage with reverence and precision.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa-kṣetra, defined between Rukmiṇī-tīrtha (east) and Taptatoya-tīrtha (west).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct rite is prescribed here; the verse provides tīrtha-boundary knowledge for proper pilgrimage.