Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 12

Devanagari script

पवित्राष्टकमेतद्धि आकाशस्थं वरानने । एतानि तत्त्वतीर्थानि सर्वाणि कथितानि वै

Transliteration

pavitrāṣṭakametaddhi ākāśasthaṃ varānane | etāni tattvatīrthāni sarvāṇi kathitāni vai

Translation

Ô toi au beau visage, ce « Pavitrāṣṭaka » demeure en vérité dans l’ākāśa, l’éther céleste. Ainsi ont été décrits, assurément, tous ces tattva-tīrthas.

Word by Word

• पवित्राष्टकम्: the set of eight purifiers
• पवित्राष्टकम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पवित्र (प्रातिपदिक) + अष्टक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (पवित्राणाम् अष्टकम्)

• एतत्: this
• एतत्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• हि: indeed/for
• हि: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: हि (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle), अव्यय; हेत्वर्थ/निश्चयार्थ-प्रयोग

• आकाशस्थम्: situated in the sky
• आकाशस्थम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: आकाश (प्रातिपदिक) + स्थ (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; √स्था धातु)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; सप्तमी-तत्पुरुषः (आकाशे स्थितम्)

• वरानने: O fair-faced one
• वरानने: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वरानना (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8), एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (वरा आनना यस्याः)

• एतानि: these
• एतानि: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), बहुवचन; सर्वनाम

• तत्त्वतीर्थानि: the reality-principle pilgrim-places
• तत्त्वतीर्थानि: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तत्त्व (प्रातिपदिक) + तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (तत्त्वस्य तीर्थानि)

• सर्वाणि: all
• सर्वाणि: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), बहुवचन

• कथितानि: have been told
• कथितानि: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √कथ् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (क्त-प्रत्यय), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), बहुवचन; कर्मणि-प्रयोगे ‘उक्त/कथित’

• वै: indeed
• वै: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वै (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (emphatic particle), अव्यय

Speaker

Skanda (deduced; vocative 'varānane')

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Pavitrāṣṭaka (octad of purity) / Tattva-tīrthas (collective)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: A addressed ‘Varānane’ (fair-faced one; likely a female interlocutor in the frame narrative)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A vast night-sky/ether field with an eight-petaled luminous yantra floating in space; below, faint outlines of earthly tīrthas; a fair-faced listener receives the teaching from a radiant sage, emphasizing spaciousness and purity.

Characters & Entities

• Pavitrāṣṭaka
• Ākāśa
• Tattva-tīrtha

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Prabhāsa’s tīrthas are presented as rooted in cosmic principles (tattvas), extending sanctity from earth and water up to the subtle ether.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Not a single named site; this verse summarizes the set as ‘tattva-tīrthas’ and situates a Pavitrāṣṭaka in ākāśa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None directly; it is a concluding statement to the catalog/classification.