Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 2

Devanagari script

सुपर्णेन पुरा देवि पातालादमृतं हृतम् । गृहीत्वा तत्र मुक्तं तु नागानां पश्यतां किल

Transliteration

suparṇena purā devi pātālādamṛtaṃ hṛtam | gṛhītvā tatra muktaṃ tu nāgānāṃ paśyatāṃ kila

Translation

Autrefois, ô Déesse, Suparṇa emporta l’amṛta depuis Pātāla. L’ayant saisi, il le relâcha en ce lieu, tandis que les Nāgas regardaient, dit-on.

Word by Word

• suparṇena: by Suparṇa (Garuḍa)
• suparṇena: Karana (Agent-instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: suparṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन — Masculine, Instrumental Singular

• purā: formerly
• purā: Kriya-visheṣaṇa (Temporal adverb/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: purā (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (adverb of time: formerly)

• devi: O goddess
• devi: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: devī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th), एकवचन — Feminine, Vocative Singular

• pātālāt: from the netherworld
• pātālāt: Apādāna (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pātāla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th), एकवचन — Neuter, Ablative Singular

• amṛtam: nectar, ambrosia
• amṛtam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: amṛta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन — Neuter, Nom./Acc. Singular

• hṛtam: was taken away
• hṛtam: Karta (Predicate complement/कर्तृ-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: hṛta (कृदन्त; √hṛ/हृ)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; भूतकृदन्त (क्त/PPP) — Neuter, Nominative Singular; ‘taken/removed’

• gṛhītvā: having taken
• gṛhītvā: Kriya-visheṣaṇa (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: √grah (ग्रह्)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (absolutive/gerund) — having seized/taken

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय (there)

• muktam: was released
• muktam: Karta (Predicate complement/कर्तृ-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mukta (कृदन्त; √muc/मुच्)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; भूतकृदन्त (क्त/PPP) — Neuter, Nominative Singular; ‘released/let go’

• tu: indeed/but
• tu: Sambandha (Discourse particle/वाक्य-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारण/विरोध-अव्यय (particle: but/indeed)

• nāgānām: of the Nāgas (serpents)
• nāgānām: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nāga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), बहुवचन — Masculine, Genitive Plural

• paśyatām: while (they) were watching
• paśyatām: Sati-saptamī/Genitive absolute sense (Circumstantial/सापेक्ष)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √paś (पश्)
• Form: शतृ-प्रत्यय (वर्तमान कृदन्त/Present active participle) ‘paśyat’ का षष्ठी-बहुवचन (genitive plural) — Genitive Plural of present participle; ‘while (they) were seeing’

• kila: it is said/indeed
• kila: Sambandha (Discourse particle/वाक्य-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kila (अव्यय)
• Form: श्रुत्यर्थक-अव्यय (hearsay/emphatic particle)

Speaker

Īśvara (Śiva)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Suparṇelā

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Devī

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Garuḍa (Suparṇa) bursts from the netherworld holding a pot of amṛta; below, astonished Nāgas coil around jeweled rocks; at the Prabhāsa shrine-ground, a drop or release of nectar sanctifies the earth.

Characters & Entities

• Suparṇa (Garuḍa)
• Pātāla
• Amṛta
• Nāgas
• Suparṇelā

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

A tīrtha’s holiness is anchored in divine-historical acts; mythic memory sanctifies geography and worship.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Suparṇelā, whose sanctity is tied to Suparṇa’s amṛta episode.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None directly; this verse provides the legendary basis (kathā) for the site’s greatness.