Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 66

Devanagari script

उच्चैस्तरं महाशैलमवलोक्य सरस्वती । अथ वेगेन रुद्धेन गिरिणा विस्मिता सती

Transliteration

uccaistaraṃ mahāśailamavalokya sarasvatī | atha vegena ruddhena giriṇā vismitā satī

Translation

Seeing the lofty, immense mountain, Sarasvatī—her swift current checked by that peak—became astonished.

Word by Word

• uccaiḥ: highly, very high
• uccaiḥ: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial modifier)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: uccais (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (क्रियाविशेषण) = adverb

• taram: more, exceedingly
• taram: Kriya-viseshana (Degree)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tara (प्रातिपदिक/तद्धित)
• Form: अव्यय (तुलनावाचक) = comparative marker; 'more/exceedingly' (used adverbially with uccaiḥ)

• mahā-śailam: the great mountain
• mahā-śailam: Karma (Object of avalokya)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + śaila (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; कर्मधारय: 'महान् शैलः' (great mountain)

• avalokya: having looked at
• avalokya: Purvakala-kriya (Absolutive)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ava-√lok (धातु) + lyap (ल्यप्)
• Form: ल्यप्-प्रत्ययान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund); पूर्वकालिक क्रिया (having seen)

• sarasvatī: Sarasvatī
• sarasvatī: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarasvatī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• atha: then
• atha: Sambandha (Discourse marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atha (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (अनन्तर/प्रस्ताव) = particle 'then/now'

• vegena: by force, by speed
• vegena: Karana (Instrument/means)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vega (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), एकवचन

• ruddhena: blocked, obstructing
• ruddhena: Karana (Qualifier of instrument)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: rudh (धातु) + kta (क्त)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त; पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन; विशेषणम् (giriṇā): 'by the mountain which has blocked'

• giriṇā: by the mountain
• giriṇā: Karana (Instrument/agent in passive sense)
• Type: Noun
• Root: giri (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन

• vismitā: astonished
• vismitā: Karta (Predicate adjective)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vi-√smi (धातु) + kta (क्त)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त; स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विधेयविशेषणम् (of sarasvatī)

• satī: the noble lady
• satī: Karta (Appositional epithet)
• Type: Noun
• Root: satī (प्रातिपदिक; √as + शतृ/स्त्री)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषणरूपेण (as epithet: 'the virtuous lady')

Speaker

Skanda (deduced; narrative description following Sarasvatī’s words)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra (contextual frame)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A powerful river-goddess (Sarasvatī) surging forward, suddenly checked by a towering, dark-blue mountain; her expression shifts to astonishment as spray rises and the landscape glows with tīrtha-aura.

Characters & Entities

• Sarasvatī
• Mountain (Giri/Mahāśaila)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Nature and divinity are interwoven in Purāṇic sacred geography; the river’s ‘checked flow’ signals a destined turning point that sanctifies the place.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa’s mythic landscape where Sarasvatī’s course meets a great mountain near the sea.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly in this verse.