Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

ईश्वर उवाच । पुलहेश्वरात्ततो देवि नैरृते धनुषाष्टके । क्रत्वीश्वरेतिनामानं महाक्रतुफलप्रदम्

Transliteration

īśvara uvāca | pulaheśvarāttato devi nairṛte dhanuṣāṣṭake | kratvīśvaretināmānaṃ mahākratuphalapradam

Translation

ઈશ્વરે કહ્યું—હે દેવી! પુલહેશ્વરથી નૈઋત્ય દિશામાં આઠ ધનુષ અંતરે ‘ક્રત્વીશ્વર’ નામનું (લિંગ) છે; તે મહાક્રતુઓનું ફળ આપનાર છે।

Word by Word

• īśvaraḥ: Īśvara
• īśvaraḥ: Karta (Speaker/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: īśvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा विभक्ति; एकवचन

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

• pulaheśvarāt: from Pulaheśvara
• pulaheśvarāt: Apadana (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pulaheśvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; पञ्चमी विभक्ति (5th/Ablative); एकवचन

• tataḥ: then/from there
• tataḥ: Sambandha (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अव्यय-क्रियाविशेषण (adverb)

• devi: O goddess
• devi: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: devī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन विभक्ति (Vocative); एकवचन

• nairṛte: in the south-west (direction)
• nairṛte: Adhikarana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nairṛta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग; सप्तमी विभक्ति; एकवचन; दिशावाचक-विशेषण (directional)

• dhanuḥ: a bow (as a measure)
• dhanuḥ: Visheshana (Measure)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dhanus (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया विभक्ति; एकवचन; मापवाचक (measure ‘bow-length’)

• aṣṭake: at eight (bow-lengths)
• aṣṭake: Adhikarana (Measure-locative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: aṣṭaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; सप्तमी विभक्ति; एकवचन; संख्यापरिमाण (group of eight)

• kratvīśvara: Kratvīśvara
• kratvīśvara: Karma (Object as name/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kratu-īśvara (प्रातिपदिक; क्रतु + ईश्वर)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया विभक्ति; एकवचन (नामरूप)

• iti: thus
• iti: Sambandha
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; इति-उद्धरणसूचक

• nāmānam: the name
• nāmānam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nāman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative); एकवचन

• mahākratuphalapradam: bestowing the fruit of great sacrifices
• mahākratuphalapradam: Visheshana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahā-kratu-phala-prada (प्रातिपदिक; महा + क्रतु + फल + प्रद)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया विभक्ति; एकवचन; विशेषण (qualifying ‘nāmānam’)

Speaker

Īśvara (Śiva)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kratvīśvara

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Devī (Pārvatī)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A pilgrim arrives at Kratvīśvara: the liṅga is depicted with a subtle yajña motif—smoke of a sacrificial fire blending into incense; Śiva’s presence is felt as the ‘lord of sacrifices’; Śiva points the way to Devī in a guiding scene.

Characters & Entities

• Īśvara (Śiva)
• Mahādevī (Pārvatī)
• Pulaheśvara
• Kratvīśvara

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

A tirtha can confer the spiritual fruit associated with major Vedic sacrifices, making dharma accessible through pilgrimage and worship.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kratvīśvara, described as southwest of Pulaheśvara in Prabhāsa Kṣetra.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

The verse primarily identifies the site and its phala (benefit); the implied practice is visiting and worshipping the deity there.