Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

ईश्वर उवाच । सारस्वतस्य विप्रस्य श्रुत्वा भोजनृपो वचः । विवर्णवदनो भूत्वा प्रगृह्यांघ्री वचोऽब्रवीत्

Transliteration

īśvara uvāca | sārasvatasya viprasya śrutvā bhojanṛpo vacaḥ | vivarṇavadano bhūtvā pragṛhyāṃghrī vaco'bravīt

Translation

Īśvara dit : Ayant entendu les paroles du brāhmane Sārasvata, le roi Bhoja devint livide ; puis, saisissant les pieds (du sage), il prononça ces mots.

Word by Word

• īśvaraḥ: Īśvara (Lord)
• īśvaraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: īśvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), एकवचन

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• sārasvatasya: of Sārasvata
• sārasvatasya: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sārasvata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (Genitive), एकवचन

• viprasya: of the brāhmaṇa
• viprasya: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vipra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (Genitive), एकवचन

• śrutvā: having heard
• śrutvā: Purvakala-kriya (Prior action/पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: śru (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (Gerund/Absolutive), ‘श्रुत्वा’ = having heard

• bhojanṛpaḥ: King Bhoja
• bhojanṛpaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhoja (प्रातिपदिक) + nṛpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), एकवचन; कर्मधारय-समास (bhoja-nṛpa = Bhoja king)

• vacaḥ: words, speech
• vacaḥ: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vacana/vacas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative), एकवचन

• vivarṇa-vadanaḥ: having a pale face
• vivarṇa-vadanaḥ: Karta-samānādhikaraṇa (Subject complement/कर्तृसमानाधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vi-varṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + vadana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (विवर्णं वदनं यस्य)

• bhūtvā: having become
• bhūtvā: Purvakala-kriya (Prior action/पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: bhū (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (Gerund/Absolutive), ‘भूत्वा’ = having become

• pragṛhya: having grasped
• pragṛhya: Purvakala-kriya (Prior action/पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra + grah (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (Gerund/Absolutive), ‘प्रगृह्य’ = having seized/held

• aṅghrī: (his) two feet
• aṅghrī: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: aṅghri (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative), द्विवचन (dual)

• vacaḥ: speech, words
• vacaḥ: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vacana/vacas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative), एकवचन

• abravīt: said, spoke
• abravīt: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: brū (धातु)
• Form: लङ्-लकार (Imperfect/Past), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

Speaker

Īśvara (narrator framing; likely Śiva as the speaking authority of this section)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Vastrāpatha-kṣetra (contextual)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Audience (implied)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: King Bhoja, pale and shaken, grasps the sage Sārasvata’s feet in supplication; the sage stands or sits composed, blessing him; the setting suggests a sacred grove near a tīrtha.

Characters & Entities

• Īśvara
• Sārasvata
• Bhoja

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Humility before dharmic counsel—honoring the guru—precedes correct understanding of pilgrimage and practice.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The setting remains Vastrāpatha-kṣetra within Prabhāsa, where the pilgrimage teaching unfolds.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No ritual; it depicts guru-veneration through pāda-grahaṇa (holding the teacher’s feet).