Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 22

Devanagari script

ततो राजभयात्सर्वे नियमं तत्र चक्रिरे । नराः शासनमाज्ञाय रामस्याक्लिष्टकर्मणः

Transliteration

tato rājabhayātsarve niyamaṃ tatra cakrire | narāḥ śāsanamājñāya rāmasyākliṣṭakarmaṇaḥ

Translation

Ainsi, par crainte du roi, tous, en ce lieu, s’imposèrent une règle sévère. Le peuple, ayant compris l’ordonnance de Rāma aux actes infatigables, s’y conforma.

Word by Word

• tataḥ: then, thereafter
• tataḥ: Adhikarana (Temporal/कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (क्रियाविशेषण) = adverb; अर्थे ‘ततः/अनन्तरम्’

• rāja-bhayāt: from fear of the king
• rāja-bhayāt: Apadana (Cause/Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rājan (प्रातिपदिक) + bhaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी-विभक्ति (5th/अपादान), एकवचन; समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (राज्ञः भयम्)

• sarve: all (of them)
• sarve: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/कर्ता), बहुवचन

• niyamam: a rule, restraint, observance
• niyamam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: niyama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (देशवाचक क्रियाविशेषण) = adverb of place

• cakrire: they made/established
• cakrire: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kṛ (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथम-पुरुष, बहुवचन; परस्मैपद; √कृ = ‘to do/make’

• narāḥ: men, people
• narāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/कर्ता), बहुवचन

• śāsanam: command, order
• śāsanam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śāsana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन

• ājñāya: having understood/known
• ājñāya: Kriya (पूर्वक्रिया/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ā-jñā (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (Gerund/Absolutive), अव्ययभाव; √आज्ञा/आ-√ज्ञा = ‘having known/understood’

• rāmasya: of Rama
• rāmasya: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rāma (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (6th/सम्बन्ध), एकवचन

• akliṣṭa-karmaṇaḥ: whose deeds are untroubled/unstained
• akliṣṭa-karmaṇaḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a-kliṣṭa (प्रातिपदिक) + karman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (6th/सम्बन्ध), एकवचन; समासः कर्मधारय (अक्लिष्टं कर्म यस्य)

Speaker

Narrator (contextual Purāṇic narrator in Prabhāsakṣetramāhātmya; traditionally Sūta)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa (contextual)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Citizens collectively adopt strict conduct under the king’s fear; a tableau of households observing restraint, guards enforcing order, and the king ‘Rāma’ (as named) issuing ordinance.

Characters & Entities

• Rāma
• rājā (king)
• niyama (observance)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Dharma is upheld through restraint (niyama) and obedience to rightful governance; collective discipline is portrayed as a stabilizing force amid ominous circumstances.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa-kṣetra, presented as a sacred arena where human conduct, law, and destiny intersect within the māhātmya.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

A general niyama (observance/discipline) is mentioned, but no specific vrata details (snāna, dāna, japa) are enumerated in this verse.