Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 52

Devanagari script

आः परं चतुर्वक्त्रो ब्रह्मा यो भविता यदा । प्राणनाथेति देवस्य तदा नाम भविष्यति

Transliteration

āḥ paraṃ caturvaktro brahmā yo bhavitā yadā | prāṇanātheti devasya tadā nāma bhaviṣyati

Translation

Et de plus : lorsque Brahmā aux quatre visages viendra à l’existence, alors le nom de ce Deva sera « Prāṇanātha », Seigneur du souffle vital.

Word by Word

• āḥ: ah!/indeed
• āḥ: Sambandha (Discourse particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: āḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: विस्मय/सम्बोधनाद्यर्थक निपात (particle/interjection)

• param: afterwards/then
• param: Adhikaraṇa (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: para (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययीभावार्थे प्रयुक्तम्; क्रियाविशेषण (adverb) ‘after/then’

• caturvaktraḥ: four-faced
• caturvaktraḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: catur + vaktra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; बहुव्रीहि—‘having four faces’

• brahmā: Brahmā
• brahmā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• yaḥ: who
• yaḥ: Anvaya (Relative pronoun/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• bhavitā: will be
• bhavitā: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √bhū (धातु)
• Form: लृट् (Simple Future), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• yadā: when
• yadā: Adhikaraṇa (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yadā (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक अव्यय (when)

• prāṇanātha: Prāṇanātha (name)
• prāṇanātha: Saṃjñā (Name/संज्ञा)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prāṇa + nātha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष—‘prāṇānāṃ nāthaḥ’ (lord of life-breaths)

• iti: thus/“…”
• iti: Sambandha (Quotation marker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (अव्यय)
• Form: इति-कारक अव्यय (quotative particle)

• devasya: of the deity
• devasya: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन

• tadā: then
• tadā: Adhikaraṇa (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tadā (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक अव्यय (then)

• nāma: name
• nāma: Karma/Viṣaya (Object/विषय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nāman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन

• bhaviṣyati: will be
• bhaviṣyati: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √bhū (धातु)
• Form: लृट् (Simple Future), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

Speaker

Rudra/Śiva (continuing the naming/prophetic discourse)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra (Deva as Prāṇanātha—epithet tradition)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A visionary tableau: four-faced Brahmā emerging on a lotus (creation moment) while a radiant Śiva principle is invoked as ‘Prāṇanātha.’ The Prabhāsa shrine motif subtly anchors the cosmic scene to the kṣetra.

Characters & Entities

• Brahmā (Caturvaktra)
• Prāṇanātha
• Deva (Śiva, implied)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Divine names are portrayed as cosmic realities that manifest according to time and creation, guiding devotees to the Lord through appropriate remembrance.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa-kṣetra in the Somnātha narrative, where the Lord’s names and worship are especially celebrated.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Implicitly, remembrance/recitation of the Lord’s name ‘Prāṇanātha’ in its destined time; no procedural rite is specified.