Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 2

Devanagari script

यदा वै नगरं कर्तुं त्वष्टा तत्र समागतः । प्रतिष्ठाप्य महादेवं नगरं कृतवांस्ततः

Transliteration

yadā vai nagaraṃ kartuṃ tvaṣṭā tatra samāgataḥ | pratiṣṭhāpya mahādevaṃ nagaraṃ kṛtavāṃstataḥ

Translation

Lorsque Tvaṣṭṛ vint là pour bâtir la cité, il installa d’abord Mahādeva, puis seulement il édifia la ville.

Word by Word

• yadā: when
• yadā: Sambandha (Temporal link/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yadā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (temporal adverb/कालवाचक)

• vai: indeed
• vai: Sambandha (Emphasis/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vai (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (emphatic particle/निपात)

• nagaram: a city
• nagaram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nagara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन

• kartum: to make
• kartum: Prayojana (Purpose/प्रयोजन)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kṛ (धातु)
• Form: तुमुन्-प्रत्ययान्त (infinitive/तुमन्त), अर्थे: कर्तुम् (to do/make)

• tvaṣṭā: Tvaṣṭṛ (the divine artisan)
• tvaṣṭā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tvaṣṭṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (locative adverb/देशवाचक)

• samāgataḥ: arrived; came together
• samāgataḥ: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-ā-gam (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past passive participle/कृदन्त), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्तरि प्रयोग (having come)

• pratiṣṭhāpya: having installed; having established
• pratiṣṭhāpya: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Verb
• Root: prati-√sthā (धातु; causative of sthā)
• Form: ल्यप्/क्त्वा-समकक्ष (absolutive/gerund), causative sense; पूर्वक्रिया

• mahādevam: Mahādeva (Śiva)
• mahādevam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā-deva (प्रातिपदिक; महत् + देव)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• nagaram: the city
• nagaram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nagara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• kṛtavān: made; constructed
• kṛtavān: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kṛ (धातु)
• Form: क्तवत्-प्रत्ययान्त (perfect participle/कृतवत्), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्तरि

• tataḥ: then; thereafter
• tataḥ: Sambandha (Sequence/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (ablatival adverb/ततः)

Speaker

Īśvara (Śiva) (continuing narration)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Liṅga-dvaya at Unnata-sthāna (Prabhāsa-kṣetra)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Devī (addressed as ‘devi’ in the surrounding passage)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Tvaṣṭṛ arrives at the sacred ground of Prabhāsa, installs a radiant Mahādeva-liṅga with ritual vessels and Vedic implements, then begins laying out the city plan around the sanctum.

Characters & Entities

• Tvaṣṭṛ
• Mahādeva (Śiva)
• City (nagara)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Dharma places the divine at the center: establishing the deity precedes worldly development, ensuring the city’s prosperity is rooted in sanctity.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Prabhāsa-kṣetra locale where the city’s foundation is linked to Mahādeva’s installation by Tvaṣṭṛ.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Pratiṣṭhā (ritual installation) of Mahādeva is implied as the foundational act before building the city.