Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 56

Devanagari script

एतदन्तरमासाद्य तीर्थानि सुरसुन्दरि । पातालादिकटाहांतं तानि तत्र वसंति वै

Transliteration

etadantaramāsādya tīrthāni surasundari | pātālādikaṭāhāṃtaṃ tāni tatra vasaṃti vai

Translation

Ô belle parmi les dieux, parvenue à cet espace intermédiaire, les tīrtha demeurent là en vérité—s’étendant jusqu’aux profondeurs semblables à un chaudron, qui commencent à Pātāla.

Word by Word

• etat: this
• etat: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन (Singular); सर्वनाम

• antaram: interval/space (within)
• antaram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: antara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन (Singular)

• āsādya: having reached/approached
• āsādya: Kriya (Non-finite verbal/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ā-sad (धातु) + ya (ल्यप्/gerund)
• Form: अव्ययकृदन्त (ल्यप्/gerund), 'having reached/approached'

• tīrthāni: holy fords/pilgrimage spots
• tīrthāni: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tīrtha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd Nom/Acc), बहुवचन (Plural)

• surasundari: O fair one among the gods
• surasundari: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sura + sundarī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/Vocative), एकवचन (Singular); कर्मधारय (sura-sundarī = 'divinely beautiful one')

• pātāla-ādi-kaṭāha-antam: extending from Pātāla etc. up to Kaṭāha
• pātāla-ādi-kaṭāha-antam: Visheshana (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pātāla + ādi + kaṭāha + anta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन (Singular); तत्पुरुष (anta = 'up to/ending at'; pātāla-ādi-kaṭāha = 'Pātāla etc. and Kaṭāha' as range); विशेषण (qualifying etat antaram)

• tāni: those (places)
• tāni: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd Nom/Acc), बहुवचन (Plural); सर्वनाम (referring to tīrthāni)

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक अव्यय (adverb: 'there')

• vasaṃti: they dwell
• vasaṃti: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vas (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन (Plural), परस्मैपद

• vai: indeed
• vai: Sambandha/Emphasis (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vai (अव्यय)
• Form: निश्चयार्थक अव्यय (particle: 'indeed/certainly')

Speaker

Śiva (addressing Devī)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra (intervening region filled with tīrthas)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Surasundarī / Mahādevī (addressed)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A cross-section vision of Prabhāsa: on the surface, shrines and waterbodies; beneath, layered realms descending to a cauldron-like Pātāla, with luminous tīrtha-spirits residing throughout.

Characters & Entities

• Prabhāsa-kṣetra
• Tīrthas
• Pātāla

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Tīrthas are living spiritual presences; their sanctity is said to pervade realms beyond ordinary sight.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The intervening sacred tract within Prabhāsa-kṣetra where multiple tīrthas are said to abide.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit ritual is stated; the verse emphasizes the pervasive presence of tīrthas, supporting pilgrimage and bathing practices by implication.