Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 33

Devanagari script

यदि मे त्वं पुरा लिंगं पूजयेथाः पितामह । ततो देवगणाः सर्वे ततो विप्रास्ततोऽपरे

Transliteration

yadi me tvaṃ purā liṃgaṃ pūjayethāḥ pitāmaha | tato devagaṇāḥ sarve tato viprāstato'pare

Translation

«Si toi, ô Grand-Père (Brahmā), tu vénérais d’abord mon Liṅga, alors toutes les cohortes des dieux suivraient ; puis les brāhmaṇa, et ensuite les autres aussi.»

Word by Word

• yadi: if
• yadi: Sambandha (Clause linker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yadi (अव्यय)
• Form: शर्तार्थक-अव्यय (conditional conjunction: if)

• me: my
• me: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: उत्तमपुरुष-सर्वनाम, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन

• tvam: you
• tvam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yusmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: मध्यमपुरुष-सर्वनाम, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• purā: formerly
• purā: Kriya-visheṣaṇa (Temporal/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: purā (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (adverb: formerly/before)

• liṅgam: the liṅga
• liṅgam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: liṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• pūjayethāḥ: should worship
• pūjayethāḥ: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √pūj (पूज् धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), मध्यमपुरुष (2nd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• pitāmaha: O Grandfather (Brahmā)
• pitāmaha: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pitāmaha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/Vocative), एकवचन

• tataḥ: then
• tataḥ: Sambandha (Sequence/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: ततः-शब्दः, क्रम/हेतुवाचक-अव्यय (then/thereupon)

• deva-gaṇāḥ: groups of gods
• deva-gaṇāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक) + gaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (देवानां गणाः)

• sarve: all
• sarve: Karta (Subject qualifier/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; विशेषण

• tataḥ: then
• tataḥ: Sambandha (Sequence/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: क्रमवाचक-अव्यय (then)

• viprāḥ: Brahmins
• viprāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vipra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

• tataḥ: then
• tataḥ: Sambandha (Sequence/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: क्रमवाचक-अव्यय (then)

• apare: others
• apare: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: apara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; 'others' इति सर्वनामवत्

Speaker

Śiva (Mahādeva/Śaṅkara), implied from context

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Arbuda acala-liṅga

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Brahmā (pītāmaha)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Śiva instructs Brahmā to worship first; behind them, ranks of devas, then brāhmaṇas and other beings, poised to follow the precedent.

Characters & Entities

• Brahmā (Pitāmaha)
• Deva-gaṇas
• Vipras (Brāhmaṇas)
• Śiva-liṅga

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Right order in worship matters: when the foremost (Brahmā) honors Śiva’s liṅga, the whole cosmos aligns in devotion.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse occurs in Prabhāsa-khaṇḍa (Arbuda-khaṇḍa), within the sacred-geography frame of Prabhāsa and the Arbuda region.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

A directive to perform liṅga-pūjā first (beginning with Brahmā), followed by collective worship by gods and brāhmaṇas.