Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 2

Devanagari script

कृत्वा महत्तपो देवि तृणबिंदुमु नीश्वरः । मासिमासि कुशाग्रेण जलबिंदुं निपीय वै

Transliteration

kṛtvā mahattapo devi tṛṇabiṃdumu nīśvaraḥ | māsimāsi kuśāgreṇa jalabiṃduṃ nipīya vai

Translation

Ô Déesse, après avoir accompli une grande austérité, le sage seigneur Tṛṇabindu, mois après mois, ne buvait vraiment qu’une seule goutte d’eau au bout d’un brin de kuśa.

Word by Word

• kṛtvā: having done
• kṛtvā: Kriya (पूर्वक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kṛ (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund), अव्ययभाव; पूर्वकर्म (prior action)

• mahat: great
• mahat: Visheshana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण (qualifying tapaḥ)

• tapaḥ: austerity/penance
• tapaḥ: Karma (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tapas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्म (object of kṛtvā)

• devi: O goddess
• devi: Sambodhana (Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: devī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative/सम्बोधन), एकवचन; संबोधन

• tṛṇabindum: Tṛṇabindu (the sage)
• tṛṇabindum: Karma (Object/Topic)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tṛṇa-bindu (प्रातिपदिक; तृण + बिन्दु)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्म (object of implied ‘(āste/abhavat)’—contextual)

• muniḥ: the sage
• muniḥ: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: muni (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्ता

• īśvaraḥ: the lord/master
• īśvaraḥ: Karta (Apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: īśvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्ता (apposition to muniḥ)

• māsi: in a month
• māsi: Adhikarana (Time)
• Type: Noun
• Root: māsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी विभक्ति, एकवचन; अधिकरण (time)

• māsi: (each) month
• māsi: Adhikarana (Time)
• Type: Noun
• Root: māsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी विभक्ति, एकवचन; अधिकरण (repetition: month after month)

• kuśāgreṇa: with the tip of a kuśa grass
• kuśāgreṇa: Karana (Instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kuśa-agra (प्रातिपदिक; कुश + अग्र)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया विभक्ति, एकवचन; करण

• jalabindum: a drop of water
• jalabindum: Karma (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jala-bindu (प्रातिपदिक; जल + बिन्दु)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्म (object of nipīya)

• nipīya: having drunk
• nipīya: Kriya (पूर्वक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ni-pā (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund) in -ya (gerund), अव्ययभाव; सह/पूर्वक्रिया

• vai: indeed
• vai: Sambandha (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vai (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, निश्चयार्थक/उपपादक निपात (emphatic particle)

Speaker

Īśvara (Śiva)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Tṛṇabindvīśvara (contextual)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Devī (Pārvatī)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Sage Tṛṇabindu in a quiet grove near the sea-wind of Prabhāsa, seated in padmāsana; a single kuśa blade held delicately, one drop of water poised at its tip; emaciated yet radiant, with a small liṅga or īśvara-symbol before him.

Characters & Entities

• Devī (addressed)
• Tṛṇabindu (sage)
• Kuśa grass

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Extreme self-discipline (tapas) sanctifies a place and becomes the spiritual foundation for enduring sacred presence.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The context is the Tṛṇabindvīśvara sacred site within Prabhāsa Kṣetra, grounded in Tṛṇabindu’s austerities.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No public rite is prescribed; the verse describes a rishi’s austerity: sipping a water-drop using the tip of kuśa grass month after month.