Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 2

Devanagari script

पितरस्तु पुरा सर्वे दिव्यक्षेत्रं समागताः । प्रभासे तपसा युक्ताः स्थिता वर्षगणान्बहून्

Transliteration

pitarastu purā sarve divyakṣetraṃ samāgatāḥ | prabhāse tapasā yuktāḥ sthitā varṣagaṇānbahūn

Translation

Autrefois, tous les Pitṛ vinrent se rassembler en ce lieu sacré et divin. À Prabhāsa, ils demeurèrent de longues années, voués à l’austérité (tapas).

Word by Word

• pitaraḥ: the Pitṛs (ancestors)
• pitaraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pitṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन

• tu: indeed; but
• tu: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधान/विरोध (particle: but/indeed)

• purā: formerly
• purā: Sambandha (Temporal/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: purā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक (adverb of time)

• sarve: all
• sarve: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifying pitaraḥ)

• divyakṣetram: the divine sacred field
• divyakṣetram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: divya-kṣetra (प्रातिपदिक; दिव्य + क्षेत्र)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; कर्म (destination)

• samāgatāḥ: having come; arrived
• samāgatāḥ: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-ā-gam (धातु)
• Form: क्त (Past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; कर्तरि-प्रयोगे (used predicatively with pitaraḥ)

• prabhāse: at Prabhāsa
• prabhāse: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prabhāsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन; अधिकरणे

• tapasā: by austerity
• tapasā: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tapas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन; करणम्

• yuktāḥ: engaged; endowed
• yuktāḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: yuj (धातु)
• Form: क्त (PPP), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; विशेषणम् (connected/engaged)

• sthitāḥ: remained; stayed
• sthitāḥ: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sthā (धातु)
• Form: क्त (PPP), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; क्रियाविशेषण-भावे/वाक्य-क्रिया (stood/remained)

• varṣagaṇān: groups of years; many years
• varṣagaṇān: Karma (Extent/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: varṣa-gaṇa (प्रातिपदिक; वर्ष + गण)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), बहुवचन; कालपरिमाणे कर्म (extent of time)

• bahūn: many
• bahūn: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bahu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), बहुवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifying varṣagaṇān)

Speaker

Īśvara (Śiva) (continuing narration to Mahādevī)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A luminous coastal sacred landscape of Prabhāsa with gathered Pitṛs—serene, austere ancestral figures—engaged in prolonged tapas, seated in rows facing a sanctified spot, with subtle divine radiance over the kṣetra.

Characters & Entities

• Pitṛs
• Prabhāsa-kṣetra

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Prabhāsa is presented as a timeless ascetic field where even the Pitṛs performed sustained tapas.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa-kṣetra as the divine field where the Pitṛs assembled.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct prescription; it narrates the Pitṛs’ austerities as the sacred background.