Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 115

Devanagari script

मंत्रा ऊचुः । सुरा यूयं तमोभूतास्तमोपहतचेतसः । ये नाध्वरस्य राजानं पूजयेयुर्महेश्वरम्

Transliteration

maṃtrā ūcuḥ | surā yūyaṃ tamobhūtāstamopahatacetasaḥ | ye nādhvarasya rājānaṃ pūjayeyurmaheśvaram

Translation

Les Mantras dirent : «Ô dieux, vous êtes devenus ténèbres ; vos esprits sont frappés d’illusion, puisque vous n’avez pas voulu adorer Maheśvara, le Seigneur souverain du sacrifice.»

Word by Word

• maṃtrāḥ: the Mantras (priests)
• maṃtrāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: maṃtra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

• ūcuḥ: said
• ūcuḥ: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन

• surāḥ: O gods
• surāḥ: Sambodhana (Addressed/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sura (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

• yūyam: you (all)
• yūyam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yusmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

• tamo-bhūtāḥ: become dark/ignorant
• tamo-bhūtāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tamas (प्रातिपदिक) + bhūta (कृदन्त; √bhū)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; तमः-भूत = तमसा भूता (become dark/ignorant)

• tamo-upahata-cetasaḥ: whose minds are struck by darkness
• tamo-upahata-cetasaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tamas (प्रातिपदिक) + upahata (कृदन्त; upa-√han) + cetas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; चेतस्-शब्दः बहुव्रीह्यर्थे ‘येषां चेतांसि’ (those whose minds)

• ye: who
• ye: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; सम्बन्धबोधक (relative pronoun)

• na: not
• na: Pratiṣedha (Negation/निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक अव्यय (negation particle)

• adhvarasya: of the sacrifice
• adhvarasya: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: adhvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन

• rājānam: the king
• rājānam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rājan (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• pūjayeyuḥ: should worship
• pūjayeyuḥ: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pūj (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन

• maheśvaram: Maheshvara (Śiva)
• maheśvaram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: maheśvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

Speaker

Mantras (personified Vedic formulas)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Vastrāpatha-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Personified Mantras speak sternly to the gods, declaring them ‘tamobhūta’ for not worshiping Maheśvara, the king of sacrifice; the atmosphere is corrective and forceful.

Characters & Entities

• Mantras
• Devas
• Maheśvara (Śiva)
• Adhvara (Yajña)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Ritual without devotion and reverence becomes tamasic; honoring Śiva is essential because he is the inner ruler of yajña.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The setting is the Prabhāsa-khaṇḍa’s Vastrāpatha-kṣetra-māhātmya, teaching the supremacy of Śiva through sacred narrative.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

It implicitly prescribes Śiva-pūjā within sacrificial rites, recognizing him as adhvara-rāja (lord of sacrifice).