Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 3

Devanagari script

क्षेममूर्तिः पुरा राजा बभूव स महाबलः । तेन तत्र तपस्तप्तं चिरकालं महात्मना

Transliteration

kṣemamūrtiḥ purā rājā babhūva sa mahābalaḥ | tena tatra tapastaptaṃ cirakālaṃ mahātmanā

Translation

Autrefois, il y eut un roi nommé Kṣemamūrti, d’une force immense. Ce souverain à l’âme élevée y accomplit des austérités durant très longtemps.

Word by Word

• kṣemamūrtiḥ: Kṣemamūrti
• kṣemamūrtiḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṣema-mūrti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा, एकवचन; नाम (proper name)

• purā: formerly
• purā: Kāla (Time/काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: purā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक (formerly/once)

• rājā: king
• rājā: Karta (Apposition/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rājan (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा, एकवचन; अप्पोजिशन—‘kṣemamūrtiḥ’

• babhūva: became; was
• babhūva: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: bhū (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect/परोक्षभूत), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• saḥ: he
• saḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• mahābalaḥ: very strong
• mahābalaḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahā-bala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषण—‘saḥ’

• tena: by him
• tena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग; तृतीया (3rd/करण), एकवचन; ‘by him’

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikarana (Locative sense/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक (there)

• tapaḥ: austerity
• tapaḥ: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tapas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘austerity’

• taptam: was performed
• taptam: Kriya (Predicative/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: tap (धातु)
• Form: क्त (past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘performed/undertaken’

• cirakālam: for a long time
• cirakālam: Kāla (Duration/काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: cira-kāla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययीभाव-समास; अव्ययवत् प्रयोगः (accusative of duration)

• mahātmanā: by the great-souled one
• mahātmanā: Karana (Agent-instrumental/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā-ātman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; तृतीया, एकवचन; विशेषणवत्—‘by the great-souled (one)’

Speaker

Narrator (contextual Purāṇic narration within Prabhāsakṣetramāhātmya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kṣemeśvara area within Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: null

Visual Art Cues

Scene: King Kṣemamūrti, leaving royal comforts, seated in meditation near a coastal grove/temple precinct at Prabhāsa, performing long austerities with matted hair and minimal attire; attendants at a distance.

Characters & Entities

• Kṣemamūrti

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sustained tapas performed in a tīrtha becomes a powerful means for spiritual accomplishment and divine grace.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa Kṣetra (Prabhāsakṣetramāhātmya), where the later Kṣemeśvara liṅga is established.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Long-term tapas (austerity) undertaken at the sacred place.