Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 56

Devanagari script

स्नानं ते नरकं घोरं प्रयास्यंति न संशयः । कृतघ्नानां च ये लोका ये लोकाः पापकर्मिणाम्

Transliteration

snānaṃ te narakaṃ ghoraṃ prayāsyaṃti na saṃśayaḥ | kṛtaghnānāṃ ca ye lokā ye lokāḥ pāpakarmiṇām

Translation

En se baignant en toi, ils iront à un enfer effroyable—sans nul doute—vers les mondes des ingrats et vers les mondes de ceux qui commettent des actes mauvais.

Word by Word

• स्नानम्: bathing / bath
• स्नानम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्नान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; ‘स्नान’ (bathing)

• ते: your
• ते: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: युष्मद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6), एकवचन; सर्वनाम (pronoun)

• नरकम्: hell
• नरकम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नरक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन

• घोरम्: terrible
• घोरम्: Visheshana (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: घोर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; विशेषण (qualifier)

• प्रयास्यन्ति: will go / will attain
• प्रयास्यन्ति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र-या (धातु)
• Form: लृट् (भविष्यत्काल/Future), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), बहुवचन; परस्मैपद

• न: not
• न: Nishedha (Negation/निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-अव्यय (negation particle)

• संशयः: doubt
• संशयः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: संशय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन

• कृतघ्नानाम्: of the ungrateful
• कृतघ्नानाम्: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कृतघ्न (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6), बहुवचन

• च: and
• च: Samuccaya (Conjunction/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• ये: which / those who
• ये: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), बहुवचन; सम्बन्धक (relative pronoun)

• लोकाः: worlds
• लोकाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: लोक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), बहुवचन

• ये: which / those
• ये: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), बहुवचन; सम्बन्धक (relative pronoun)

• लोकाः: worlds
• लोकाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: लोक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), बहुवचन

• पापकर्मिणाम्: of evil-doers
• पापकर्मिणाम्: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पाप-कर्मिन् (प्रातिपदिक; पाप + कर्मिन्)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6), बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (determinative)

Speaker

Brāhmaṇas

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa (forbidden jalāśaya)

Type: kund

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Pilgrimage-inquirer, unspecified

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A stark moral vision: pilgrims approaching a darkened water-body while, in a symbolic overlay, naraka realms loom—chains, smoke, and shadowy judges—contrasted with the luminous sacred kṣetra beyond.

Characters & Entities

• Ocean (Samudra)
• Naraka
• Kṛtaghna
• Pāpakarmī

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Ritual acts like bathing yield results according to the purity of the medium and the moral context; heed dharmic prohibitions.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa-kṣetra; the narrative underscores that sacred geography includes both sanctifying and cautionary zones.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

A negative prescription: bathing (snāna) in the cursed water is condemned and said to lead to naraka.