Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 9

Devanagari script

अत एव हि मे नाम धर्मराजेति विश्रुतम्

Transliteration

ata eva hi me nāma dharmarājeti viśrutam

Translation

«C’est pour cette raison même que mon nom est célébré comme Dharmarāja, le Roi du Dharma.»

Word by Word

• ataḥ: therefore
• ataḥ: Sambandha (Causal connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atas (अतः अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; हेत्वर्थक (therefore/from this)

• eva: indeed
• eva: Sambandha (Emphasis/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (एव अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारण (indeed/just)

• hi: for/indeed
• hi: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (हि अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; हेतौ/निश्चये (for/indeed)

• me: my
• me: Sambandha (Possessor/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (अस्मद् सर्वनाम)
• Form: षष्ठी; एकवचन (mama)

• nāma: name
• nāma: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nāman (नामन् प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन

• dharmarāja: Dharmarāja
• dharmarāja: Karta (Predicate nominative/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dharma (धर्म) + rāja (राजन्)
• Form: तत्पुरुष (धर्मस्य राजा); पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन; इति-शब्देन नामनिर्देश

• iti: thus/‘as’
• iti: Sambandha (Quotation marker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (इति अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; इति-निर्देशक (quotative/marker)

• viśrutam: is renowned
• viśrutam: Kriyā (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi√śru (वि + श्रु धातु)
• Form: क्त (past passive participle); नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा; एकवचन; कर्मणि (is renowned)

Speaker

Yama (Dharmarāja)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: brāhmaṇa-sattama

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A close-up, iconic moment: Yama declares the reason for his epithet ‘Dharmarāja’, with a calm, judicial bearing and dharma symbols subtly present.

Characters & Entities

• Yama
• Dharmarāja
• Dharma

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Divine justice is grounded in dharma and operates impersonally; Yama’s authority is defined by upholding dharma.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The teaching occurs within the Prabhāsa Kṣetra Māhātmya, linking dharma’s governance to the sacred geography of Prabhāsa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it is a doctrinal statement explaining Yama’s epithet ‘Dharmarāja’.