Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 106

Devanagari script

तदा द्वादशभिर्मासैर्व्रत मेतत्समाप्यते । माघमासे चतुर्दश्यां प्रारम्भः क्रियते नृप

Transliteration

tadā dvādaśabhirmāsairvrata metatsamāpyate | māghamāse caturdaśyāṃ prārambhaḥ kriyate nṛpa

Translation

Alors ce vœu peut être accompli en douze mois. Ô Roi, son commencement se fait le quatorzième jour (caturdaśī) du mois de Māgha.

Word by Word

• tadā: then
• tadā: Kāla-adhikaraṇa (Temporal adjunct)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tadā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक (Indeclinable; temporal adverb)

• dvādaśabhiḥ: by twelve
• dvādaśabhiḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier of māsaiḥ)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dvādaśa (प्रातिपदिक; संख्या)
• Form: त्रिलिङ्ग, तृतीया विभक्ति, बहुवचन (Numeral; Instrumental, Plural)

• māsaiḥ: by months
• māsaiḥ: Karaṇa (Instrument/measure)
• Type: Noun
• Root: māsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया विभक्ति, बहुवचन (Masculine, Instrumental, Plural)

• vratam: the vow
• vratam: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vrata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन (Neuter, Nom/Acc, Singular)

• etat: this
• etat: Viśeṣaṇa (Demonstrative of vratam)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: etad (प्रातिपदिक; सर्वनाम)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन (Neuter, Nom/Acc, Singular)

• samāpyate: is completed, comes to an end
• samāpyate: Kriyā (Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-āp (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद (Present Indicative, 3rd person singular, Middle/Passive sense)

• māghamāse: in the month of Māgha
• māghamāse: Adhikaraṇa (Location/time)
• Type: Noun
• Root: māgha (प्रातिपदिक) + māsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी विभक्ति, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (Masculine, Locative, Singular; ‘in the month of Māgha’)

• caturdaśyām: on the fourteenth (tithi)
• caturdaśyām: Kāla-adhikaraṇa (Temporal adjunct)
• Type: Noun
• Root: caturdaśī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी विभक्ति, एकवचन (Feminine, Locative, Singular)

• prārambhaḥ: the beginning
• prārambhaḥ: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prārambha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति, एकवचन (Masculine, Nominative, Singular)

• kriyate: is done/made
• kriyate: Kriyā (Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kṛ (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद (Present Indicative, 3rd person singular, Middle/Passive sense)

• nṛpa: O king
• nṛpa: Sambodhana (Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nṛpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन विभक्ति, एकवचन (Masculine, Vocative, Singular)

Speaker

Sārasvata

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Vastrāpatha-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: A king (nṛpa) addressed directly

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A king receives instruction from a sage about commencing a year-long vrata on Māgha caturdaśī; a sacred coastal landscape with tīrtha markers and a shrine in the distance; calendrical symbols (tithi, months) subtly indicated.

Characters & Entities

• Māgha
• Caturdaśī
• Śivarātri-vrata (implied)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

When long vows are difficult, dharma provides a feasible form—completed within a year—without losing sacred intent.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The calendar instruction is given within the Vastrāpathakṣetra Māhātmya of Prabhāsa Khaṇḍa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Begin the vrata on Māgha month caturdaśī, and complete it through a twelve-month cycle.