Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 3

Devanagari script

महदाश्चर्यजनके संप्राप्तो गिरिमूर्द्धनि । न विचारस्त्वयाकार्यः कर्त्तव्यं ब्रह्मभाषितम्

Transliteration

mahadāścaryajanake saṃprāpto girimūrddhani | na vicārastvayākāryaḥ karttavyaṃ brahmabhāṣitam

Translation

«En cet instant qui enfante un grand prodige, parvenu au sommet de la montagne, ne délibère pas : ce que Brahmā a prononcé doit être accompli.»

Word by Word

• mahat: great
• mahat: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन; विशेषण (adjectival)

• āścarya-janake: in the wonder-causing (place/occasion)
• āścarya-janake: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: āścarya (प्रातिपदिक) + janaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (āścaryasya janakaḥ)

• saṃprāptaḥ: having arrived
• saṃprāptaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam + √prāp (धातु)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त/PPP), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; कर्मणि/भावे प्रयोग-सम्भव

• giri-mūrdhani: on the mountain-top
• giri-mūrdhani: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: giri (प्रातिपदिक) + mūrdhan (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (gireḥ mūrdhan)

• na: not
• na: Sambandha/Particle (सम्बन्ध/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-अव्यय (negation particle)

• vicāraḥ: deliberation
• vicāraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vicāra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन

• tvayā: by you
• tvayā: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tvad (प्रातिपदिक/सर्वनाम)
• Form: सर्वनाम, द्वितीया? (correction) तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन

• akāryaḥ: not to be done / unnecessary
• akāryaḥ: Pradhana-predicative (विधेय)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a- + kārya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; निषेध-उपसर्गयुक्त विशेषण

• kartavyam: must be done
• kartavyam: Karya (Obligation/कार्य)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √kṛ (धातु) → kartavya (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भाव्य/कर्तव्यतार्थक कृदन्त (तव्यत्), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; विधेय-रूपे

• brahma-bhāṣitam: spoken by Brahmā
• brahma-bhāṣitam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक) + bhāṣita (प्रातिपदिक/कृदन्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; तृतीया/षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषार्थ (brahmaṇā bhāṣitam / brahma-bhāṣitam)

Speaker

Viṣṇu (deduced: advisory voice in the Brahmā–Viṣṇu–Śiva sequence; not explicitly marked here)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Meru-śṛṅga (cosmic summit)

Type: peak

Visual Art Cues

Scene: On a mountain summit amid a wonder-producing event, a divine advisor/voice urges immediate execution of Brahmā’s spoken command—no deliberation.

Characters & Entities

• Viṣṇu
• Brahmā
• Mountain summit (giri-mūrdhan)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

When dharmic duty is clear, hesitation is discouraged; decisive action sustains cosmic order.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The immediate location is a ‘mountain summit’ within the narrative; the overarching glorification remains Vastrāpathakṣetra in Prabhāsa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it is an instruction about resolve and duty.