Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 32

Devanagari script

एकः स्नाति सदा माघं प्रयागे नरसत्तमः । अन्यः पश्यति मामत्र फलं ताभ्यां समं स्मृतम्

Transliteration

ekaḥ snāti sadā māghaṃ prayāge narasattamaḥ | anyaḥ paśyati māmatra phalaṃ tābhyāṃ samaṃ smṛtam

Translation

નરોમાં શ્રેષ્ઠ એક વ્યક્તિ પ્રયાગમાં માઘમાસભર નિયમિત સ્નાન કરે છે; બીજી વ્યક્તિ અહીં મારું દર્શન કરે છે—બન્નેનું ફળ સમાન કહેવાયું છે.

Word by Word

• ekaḥ: one (person)
• ekaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: eka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• snāti: bathes
• snāti: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √snā (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथम-पुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular)

• sadā: always
• sadā: Kriyā-viśeṣaṇa (Temporal modifier/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sadā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक (adverb of time: ‘always’)

• māgham: (during) Māgha (month)
• māgham: Kāla-adhikaraṇa (Time/काल)
• Type: Noun
• Root: māgha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (Singular); कालवाचक-उपपद (time-accusative)

• prayāge: at Prayāga
• prayāge: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prayāga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/7th), एकवचन (Singular)

• narasattamaḥ: the best of men
• narasattamaḥ: Karta (Apposition/कर्ता-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nara + sattama (प्रातिपदिक); समासः
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (narāṇāṃ sattamaḥ)

• anyaḥ: another (person)
• anyaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: anya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• paśyati: sees
• paśyati: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √paś (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथम-पुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular)

• mām: me
• mām: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: उत्तम-पुरुष-सर्वनाम, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (Singular)

• atra: here
• atra: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक-अव्यय (locative adverb)

• phalam: result
• phalam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: phala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• tābhyām: by/for those two
• tābhyām: Karaṇa/Hetu (Instrument/Means/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: त्रिलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental/3rd), द्विवचन (Dual)

• samam: equal
• samam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); विशेषणम् (qualifying) phalam

• smṛtam: is stated
• smṛtam: Kriyā (Predicate/विधेय)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √smṛ (धातु) + kta (क्त)
• Form: कृदन्त (past passive participle, क्त-प्रत्यय); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced from Prabhāsakṣetra Māhātmya narrative style)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra (in comparison to Prayāga)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Unspecified

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Two-panel comparison: left, pilgrims bathing at Prayāga’s confluence during Māgha with sunrise and crowds; right, a single devotee at Prabhāsa taking darśana—both streams of merit shown as equal through a shared golden aura.

Characters & Entities

• Prabhāsa
• Prabhāsakṣetra
• Prayāga
• Māgha-snāna

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Prabhāsa is praised as so meritorious that a single darśana equals the famed Māgha-month bathing discipline at Prayāga.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Primarily Prabhāsakṣetra; Prayāga is mentioned as a renowned comparator tīrtha.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Māgha-snāna—bathing throughout the month of Māgha at Prayāga.