Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 14

Devanagari script

नम आद्याय बीजाय आर्षेयाय प्रवर्त्तिने । अनंतराय चैकाय अव्यक्ताय नमोनमः

Transliteration

nama ādyāya bījāya ārṣeyāya pravarttine | anaṃtarāya caikāya avyaktāya namonamaḥ

Translation

原初なる御方、万有の種子なる御方、仙人（ṛṣi）のごとく万象を起動せしめる主に帰依して礼拝する。無限なる唯一者、未顕現なる御方に、重ねて重ねてナモー。

Word by Word

• नमः: salutation
• नमः: Kriya/Salutation (नमस्कार-क्रिया)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नमस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); नमस्कारार्थक-प्रयोगः

• आद्याय: to the primordial
• आद्याय: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: आद्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी-विभक्ति (Dative/4th), एकवचन (Singular)

• बीजाय: to the seed (source)
• बीजाय: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: बीज (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (अत्र देवविशेषणरूपेण), चतुर्थी-विभक्ति (Dative/4th), एकवचन (Singular)

• आर्षेयाय: to the seer-born/ṛṣi-related
• आर्षेयाय: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: आर्षेय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी-विभक्ति (Dative/4th), एकवचन (Singular)

• प्रवर्त्तिने: to the initiator/impeller
• प्रवर्त्तिने: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्रवर्तिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी-विभक्ति (Dative/4th), एकवचन (Singular)

• अनन्तराय: to the uninterrupted/without interval
• अनन्तराय: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अनन्तर (प्रातिपदिक; न-अन्तर)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी-विभक्ति (Dative/4th), एकवचन (Singular)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• एकाय: to the one
• एकाय: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: एक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी-विभक्ति (Dative/4th), एकवचन (Singular)

• अव्यक्ताय: to the unmanifest
• अव्यक्ताय: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अव्यक्त (प्रातिपदिक; न-व्यक्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी-विभक्ति (Dative/4th), एकवचन (Singular)

• नमः: salutation
• नमः: Kriya/Salutation (नमस्कार-क्रिया)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नमस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• नमः: salutation
• नमः: Kriya/Salutation (नमस्कार-क्रिया)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नमस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

Speaker

Ṛṣis (sages)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Maheśvara

Visual Art Cues

Scene: The hymn continues: sages salute Śiva as the primordial seed and the unmanifest one; behind Śiva’s form, a cosmic backdrop shows a subtle ‘seed’ point expanding into worlds, yet returning to a calm unmanifest field.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva (addressed)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The Lord is simultaneously the initiating cause and the transcendent, unmanifest One—inviting reverence beyond sectarian limits.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsakṣetra, where such hymns are framed as a response to divine manifestation.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Devotional recitation (stotra) characterized by repeated salutations and contemplative divine epithets.