Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 3

Devanagari script

प्रभासक्षेत्रमासाद्य दृष्ट्वा तत्र महोदधिम् । अर्घ्यं दत्तवती तत्र विधिना तन्महोदधेः

Transliteration

prabhāsakṣetramāsādya dṛṣṭvā tatra mahodadhim | arghyaṃ dattavatī tatra vidhinā tanmahodadheḥ

Translation

Parvenue à Prabhāsa Kṣetra et ayant contemplé le grand océan qui s’y étend, elle offrit l’arghya à cette mer majestueuse selon le rite prescrit.

Word by Word

• prabhāsa-kṣetram: Prabhāsa-kṣetra
• prabhāsa-kṣetram: Karma (Goal/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prabhāsa (प्रातिपदik) + kṣetra (प्रातिपदik)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (प्रभासस्य क्षेत्रम्); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; accusative singular (goal)

• āsādya: having reached
• āsādya: Pūrvakāla-kriyā (Prior action/पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ā-sad (धा॒तु) + ya (ल्यप्)
• Form: ल्यप्-प्रत्ययान्त अव्ययभाव (gerund); ‘having reached’

• dṛṣṭvā: having seen
• dṛṣṭvā: Pūrvakāla-kriyā (Prior action/पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dṛś (धा॒तु) + tvā (क्त्वा)
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त (gerund); ‘having seen’

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

• mahā-udadhiṃ: the great ocean
• mahā-udadhiṃ: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदik) + udadhi (प्रातिपदik)
• Form: कर्मधारय-समास; पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; accusative singular (object of dṛṣṭvā)

• arghyam: arghya-offering (water offering)
• arghyam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: arghya (प्रातिपदik)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; accusative singular (thing offered)

• dattavatī: gave
• dattavatī: Kriyā (Main action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dā (धा॒तु) + tavat (क्तवतु)
• Form: क्तवतु-प्रत्ययान्त (past active participle); स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; ‘she who gave’

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

• vidhinā: according to the prescribed rite
• vidhinā: Karaṇa (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vidhi (प्रातिपदik)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (करण), एकवचन; instrumental singular ‘according to rule/with rite’

• tat: of that
• tat: Sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदik)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, एकवचन; genitive singular used as determiner ‘of that’

• mahā-udadheḥ: of the great ocean
• mahā-udadheḥ: Sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठī)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदik) + udadhi (प्रातिपदik)
• Form: कर्मधारय-समास; पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, एकवचन; genitive singular ‘of the great ocean’

Speaker

Īśvara (Śiva) (carried from Adhyāya 66 opening)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra (ocean-front tīrtha)

Type: ghat

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Devī (Pārvatī)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Devī at the Prabhāsa shore, facing the vast ocean, offering arghya with a vessel; waves and horizon dominate, with a sense of rite and restraint.

Characters & Entities

• Prabhāsa Kṣetra
• Mahodadhi (ocean)
• Devī
• Arghya

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Nature within a tīrtha—especially the ocean at Prabhāsa—is approached as sacred and worthy of ritual honor performed with proper vidhi.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa Kṣetra and its Mahodadhi (the sacred ocean), in the Arghyeśvara context.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Offering arghya (ritual water oblation) to the ocean according to prescribed procedure.