Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 59

Devanagari script

कृष्णाष्टम्यां च ये मर्त्याः संध्यायां भस्मवर्जिताः । पंचदश्यां महादेवं न यजंति च यत्र वै

Transliteration

kṛṣṇāṣṭamyāṃ ca ye martyāḥ saṃdhyāyāṃ bhasmavarjitāḥ | paṃcadaśyāṃ mahādevaṃ na yajaṃti ca yatra vai

Translation

Ces mortels qui, à Kṛṣṇāṣṭamī, accomplissent le rite du crépuscule sans bhasma (cendre sacrée), et ce lieu où, au quinzième jour, Mahādeva n’est pas adoré—un tel endroit porte la marque du déclin du dharma.

Word by Word

• कृष्णाष्टम्याम्: on Kṛṣṇāṣṭamī
• कृष्णाष्टम्याम्: Adhikaraṇa (Time)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कृष्णाष्टमी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; सप्तमी (7th); एकवचन

• च: and
• च: Sambandha/Avyaya (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय

• ये: who (those who)
• ये: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st); बहुवचन; सम्बन्धबोधक-सर्वनाम

• मर्त्याः: mortals/men
• मर्त्याः: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मर्त्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st); बहुवचन

• संध्यायाम्: at twilight (sandhyā)
• संध्यायाम्: Adhikaraṇa (Time)
• Type: Noun
• Root: संध्या (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; सप्तमी (7th); एकवचन

• भस्म-वर्जिताः: devoid of sacred ash
• भस्म-वर्जिताः: Karta (Subject-qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: भस्मन् (प्रातिपदिक) + वर्जित (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (भस्मना वर्जिताः); पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st); बहुवचन; विशेषण (qualifying ‘मर्त्याः’)

• पञ्चदश्याम्: on the fifteenth lunar day
• पञ्चदश्याम्: Adhikaraṇa (Time)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पञ्चदशी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; सप्तमी (7th); एकवचन

• महादेवम्: Mahādeva (Śiva)
• महादेवम्: Karma (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महादेव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (2nd); एकवचन

• न: not
• न: Pratiṣedha (Negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निषेध

• यजन्ति: they worship/sacrifice to
• यजन्ति: Kriyā (Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: यज् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present); प्रथमपुरुष; बहुवचन; परस्मैपद

• च: and
• च: Sambandha/Avyaya (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय

• यत्र: where
• यत्र: Adhikaraṇa (Locative sense)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक-सम्बन्ध (where)

• वै: indeed
• वै: Sambandha/Avyaya (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वै (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निश्चय/खलु-अर्थ (emphatic particle)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Twilight on Kṛṣṇāṣṭamī: a householder performs sandhyā without bhasma, while nearby the full-moon day’s Śiva shrine stands unattended—two omissions shown as cracks in dharma.

Characters & Entities

• Kṛṣṇāṣṭamī
• Sandhyā
• Bhasma
• Mahādeva
• Pañcadaśī

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Purāṇic dharma is sustained by daily discipline (sandhyā) and deity-worship on key tithis; neglect weakens spiritual protection.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa-kṣetra, where correct Śaiva practice is treated as a sign of sacred order.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Sandhyā performed with bhasma (sacred ash) and worship of Mahādeva on the fifteenth lunar day.