Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 2

Devanagari script

यत्र गंधर्वराजो वै घनवाहेति विश्रुतः । तस्य गंधर्वसेनेति ख्याता पुत्री महाप्रभा

Transliteration

yatra gaṃdharvarājo vai ghanavāheti viśrutaḥ | tasya gaṃdharvaseneti khyātā putrī mahāprabhā

Translation

Là, en vérité, demeurait le roi des Gandharvas, renommé sous le nom de Ghanavāha. Sa fille, d’un éclat sublime, était connue sous le nom de Gandharvasenā.

Word by Word

• यत्र: where
• यत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, सम्बन्धबोधक-अव्यय (relative adverb: 'where')

• गन्धर्वराजः: the king of the Gandharvas
• गन्धर्वराजः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गन्धर्व + राजन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• वै: indeed
• वै: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वै (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, निपात (emphatic particle)

• घनवाह: Ghanavāha (name)
• घनवाह: Karta (Apposition/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: घनवाह (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); नाम (proper name)

• इति: thus; called
• इति: Sambandha (Quotation marker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इति (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, उद्धरण-चिह्न (quotative particle)

• विश्रुतः: well-known; renowned
• विश्रुतः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वि + श्रु (धातु) + क्त (प्रत्यय)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); विशेषण of गन्धर्वराजः

• तस्य: of him; his
• तस्य: Sambandha (Possessor/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (Genitive/6th), एकवचन (Singular)

• गन्धर्वसेना: Gandharvasenā (name)
• गन्धर्वसेना: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गन्धर्व + सेना (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); नाम (proper name)

• इति: thus; called
• इति: Sambandha (Quotation marker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इति (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, उद्धरण-चिह्न (quotative particle)

• ख्याता: known; famed
• ख्याता: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ख्या (धातु) + क्त (प्रत्यय)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past passive participle), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); विशेषण of पुत्री

• पुत्री: daughter
• पुत्री: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुत्री (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• महाप्रभा: of great splendor
• महाप्रभा: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महā + प्रभा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); विशेषण of पुत्री

Speaker

Īśvara (Śiva)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Gandharveśvara (legendary setting)

Type: temple

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Mahādevī (Pārvatī)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A luminous Gandharva king, Ghanavāha, with musical retinue near a Śiva shrine; beside him his radiant daughter Gandharvasenā, adorned with celestial ornaments, setting the stage for a forthcoming episode.

Characters & Entities

• Gandharveśvara
• Ghanavāha (Gandharva king)
• Gandharvasenā
• Gandharvas

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Tīrthas are embedded in sacred memory—places gain sanctity through divine and semi-divine lineages connected to them.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Gandharveśvara and its associated Gandharva tradition within Prabhāsa Kṣetra.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; this verse introduces the site’s associated mythic personages.