Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 37

Devanagari script

पुलस्त्य उवाच । एवमस्त्विति सा देवी प्रोच्य गंगां महानदीम् । ततो विसर्जयामास तामालिंग्य मुहुर्मुहुः

Transliteration

pulastya uvāca | evamastviti sā devī procya gaṃgāṃ mahānadīm | tato visarjayāmāsa tāmāliṃgya muhurmuhuḥ

Translation

Pulastya dit : Prononçant « Qu’il en soit ainsi », la Déesse s’adressa à Gaṅgā, le grand fleuve ; puis elle la congédia, l’étreignant encore et encore.

Word by Word

• pulastyaḥ: Pulastya
• pulastyaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pulastya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (perfect/परोक्षभूत), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• evam: thus
• evam: Kriya-visheṣaṇa (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: evam (अव्यय)
• Form: रीति-अव्यय (adverb of manner)

• astu: let it be
• astu: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: as (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (imperative/आज्ञार्थ), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• iti: thus (quoting)
• iti: Sambandha (Quotation-marker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (अव्यय)
• Form: उद्धरण/वाक्य-समाप्ति-अव्यय (quotative particle)

• sā: she
• sā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• devī: the goddess
• devī: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: devī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन

• procya: having said/addressed
• procya: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra+vac (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त अव्ययभाव (gerund/absolutive); ‘प्र+वच्’

• gaṃgām: Gaṅgā
• gaṃgām: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gaṃgā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन

• mahā-nadīm: the great river
• mahā-nadīm: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + nadī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; कर्मधारय-समासः (महती च सा नदी)

• tataḥ: then
• tataḥ: Kriya-visheṣaṇa (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: काल/क्रम-अव्यय (adverb: thereafter/from there)

• visarjayāmāsa: sent away, dismissed
• visarjayāmāsa: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi+√sṛj (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-प्राय (परिप्रास/परस्मैपद), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; causative (णिच्) भावः: ‘विसर्जयति’

• tām: her
• tām: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• āliṅgya: having embraced
• āliṅgya: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ā+√liṅg (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त अव्ययभाव (gerund/absolutive)

• muhuḥ: again and again
• muhuḥ: Kriya-visheṣaṇa (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: muhuḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: आवृत्ति-अव्यय (adverb: repeatedly)

• muhuḥ: again and again
• muhuḥ: Kriya-visheṣaṇa (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: muhuḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: आवृत्ति-अव्यय (repetition for emphasis)

Speaker

Pulastya

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Śivagaṅgā / Śiva-kuṇḍa (episode closure)

Type: kund

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Pulastya narrates: the goddess says ‘So be it’ to Gaṅgā and sends her off, embracing her repeatedly—an affectionate, peaceful farewell beside the sacred waters.

Characters & Entities

• Pulastya
• Gaṅgā
• Devī (Pārvatī implied)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Harmony among divine powers sanctifies the world, and affectionate reconciliation becomes the seed of tīrtha-mahātmya.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The narrative context is the establishment and fame of Śivagaṅgā-kuṇḍa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; this verse closes a narrative beat (consent and dismissal) within the tīrtha’s origin account.