Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 84

Devanagari script

सप्तवर्षा भवेद्गौरी नववर्षा तु नग्निका । दशवर्षा भवेत्कन्या ह्यत ऊर्ध्वं रजस्वला

Transliteration

saptavarṣā bhavedgaurī navavarṣā tu nagnikā | daśavarṣā bhavetkanyā hyata ūrdhvaṃ rajasvalā

Translation

À sept ans, elle est «Gaurī» ; à neuf ans, «Nagnikā». À dix ans, elle est «Kanyā» ; au-delà, elle est classée «Rajasvalā» (celle qui a ses menstrues).

Word by Word

• saptavarṣā: seven-year-old
• saptavarṣā: Predicate qualifier (विधेय-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sapta (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक) + varṣā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; द्विगु-समास (सप्त वर्षाणि यस्याः/या)

• bhavet: would be/is to be
• bhavet: Copula (विधेय-क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √bhū (भू)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन

• gaurī: Gaurī
• gaurī: Predicate nominative (समानााधिकरण/विधेय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gaurī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• navavarṣā: nine-year-old
• navavarṣā: Predicate qualifier (विधेय-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nava (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक) + varṣā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; द्विगु-समास

• tu: but
• tu: Discourse particle
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (contrast/emphasis)

• nagnikā: nagnikā (naked girl)
• nagnikā: Predicate (विधेय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nagnikā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• daśavarṣā: ten-year-old
• daśavarṣā: Predicate qualifier (विधेय-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: daśa (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक) + varṣā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; द्विगु-समास

• bhavet: would be
• bhavet: Copula (विधेय-क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √bhū (भू)
• Form: विधिलिङ्, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• kanyā: maiden
• kanyā: Predicate (विधेय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kanyā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• hi: indeed, for
• hi: Discourse particle
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (emphasis/causal particle)

• ataḥ: thereafter, from then
• ataḥ: Adverbial
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb: ‘from this/thereafter’)

• ūrdhvam: above, onwards
• ūrdhvam: Adverbial
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ūrdhva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय-प्रयोग (adverbial accusative)

• rajasvalā: menstruating
• rajasvalā: Predicate (विधेय)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: rajasvalā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण (predicate)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced from Prabhāsa-kṣetra Māhātmya narrative style)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Ṛṣis of Naimiṣāraṇya (typical frame)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A dharma-teaching scene in a tīrtha assembly: elders or a sage enumerates stages of girlhood with didactic gestures; background shows Prabhāsa’s coastal sacred landscape and a Somnātha-like shrine silhouette.

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The text encodes dharma guidance through age/life-stage categories, aiming to preserve order in saṃskāras and ritual life.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa-kṣetra is the broader Māhātmya setting; dharma teachings are presented as supportive of tīrtha merit and Pitṛ welfare.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct prescription; it provides age-based definitions used in deciding appropriateness for traditional rites.