Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 16

Devanagari script

भद्राश्वेऽश्वशिरा विष्णुर्भारते कूर्मसंस्थितः । वराहः केतुमाले च मत्स्यरूपस्तथोत्तरे

Transliteration

bhadrāśve'śvaśirā viṣṇurbhārate kūrmasaṃsthitaḥ | varāhaḥ ketumāle ca matsyarūpastathottare

Translation

In Bhadrāśva Viṣṇu abides as Hayagrīva, the Horse-headed One; in Bhārata He is established as Kūrma, the Tortoise; in Ketumāla He is present as Varāha, the Boar; and in the northern region He appears as Matsya, the Fish.

Word by Word

• bhadrāśve: in Bhadrāśva (varṣa)
• bhadrāśve: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhadrāśva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (देश/वर्षनाम), सप्तमी (7), एकवचन

• aśvaśirāḥ: the one with a horse-head
• aśvaśirāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: aśva (प्रातिपदिक) + śiras (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; बहुव्रीहि (अश्वस्य शिरो यस्य)

• viṣṇuḥ: Viṣṇu
• viṣṇuḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viṣṇu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन

• bhārate: in Bhārata
• bhārate: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhārata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7), एकवचन

• kūrma-saṃsthitaḥ: situated as the tortoise (Kūrma)
• kūrma-saṃsthitaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kūrma (प्रातिपदिक) + saṃ + √sthā (स्था) (धातु) → saṃsthita (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकृदन्त; तत्पुरुष (कूर्मे संस्थितः)

• varāhaḥ: the Boar (Varāha)
• varāhaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: varāha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन

• ketumāle: in Ketumāla (varṣa)
• ketumāle: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ketumāla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (देश/वर्षनाम), सप्तमी (7), एकवचन

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• matsya-rūpaḥ: the one whose form is a fish (Matsya)
• matsya-rūpaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: matsya (प्रातिपदिक) + rūpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; बहुव्रीहि (मत्स्यरूपं यस्य)

• tathā: likewise
• tathā: Sambandha (Manner/प्रकार)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रकारवाचक-अव्यय (thus/likewise)

• uttare: in the northern (region)
• uttare: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: uttara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (देश/वर्षनाम: उत्तरकुरु/उत्तरदेश), सप्तमी (7), एकवचन

Speaker

Unspecified (contextual narrator within Prabhāsakṣetra Māhātmya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Bhārata-varṣa (as Kūrma-sthāna) within Prabhāsa discourse

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Mahādevī

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A cosmographic tableau: four regions depicted as panels, each with Viṣṇu’s distinct form—Hayagrīva in Bhadrāśva, Kūrma in Bhārata, Varāha in Ketumāla, Matsya in the northern realm—linking landforms to avatāras.

Characters & Entities

• Viṣṇu
• Hayagrīva (Aśvaśirā)
• Kūrma
• Varāha
• Matsya
• Bhadrāśva
• Bhārata
• Ketumāla

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The Divine pervades the whole cosmos in suitable forms, guiding beings according to place and need—inviting reverence for sacred geography as dharmic order.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The broader context is Prabhāsakṣetra’s Māhātmya, but this verse itself praises a cosmic mapping of Viṣṇu’s forms across varṣas rather than a single tirtha.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None in this verse; it is primarily cosmological/theological description.