Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 34

Devanagari script

अथासौ भ्रममाणस्तु तीर्थान्यायतनानि च । संप्राप्तो ब्राह्मणश्रेष्ठाः प्रभासं क्षेत्रमुत्तमम्

Transliteration

athāsau bhramamāṇastu tīrthānyāyatanāni ca | saṃprāpto brāhmaṇaśreṣṭhāḥ prabhāsaṃ kṣetramuttamam

Translation

ನಂತರ ಅವನು ತೀರ್ಥಗಳನ್ನೂ ದೇವಾಲಯಗಳನ್ನೂ ಸುತ್ತಾಡುತ್ತಾ—ಹೇ ಬ್ರಾಹ್ಮಣಶ್ರೇಷ್ಠರೇ—ಪ್ರಭಾಸವೆಂಬ ಅತ್ಯುತ್ತಮ ಕ್ಷೇತ್ರವನ್ನು ತಲುಪಿದನು।

Word by Word

• अथ: then
• अथ: Sambandha (Discourse/Sequence)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; आरम्भ/अनन्तरबोधक

• असौ: that person/he
• असौ: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अदस् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• भ्रममाणः: wandering
• भ्रममाणः: Karta (Agent)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भ्रम् (धातु)
• Form: वर्तमानकाले शानच्-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (present middle participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; आत्मनेपदी

• तु: indeed/but
• तु: Sambandha (Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; विरोध/अन्वयार्थक (particle)

• तीर्थानि: holy places
• तीर्थानि: Karma (Object/Range)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, बहुवचन

• आयतनानि: abodes/shrines
• आयतनानि: Karma (Object/Range)
• Type: Noun
• Root: आयतन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, बहुवचन

• च: and
• च: Samuccaya (Conjunction)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• संप्राप्तः: having reached
• संप्राप्तः: Karta (Subject predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम् + प्र + आप् (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (past participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; ‘arrived’

• ब्राह्मणश्रेष्ठाः: O best of Brahmins
• ब्राह्मणश्रेष्ठाः: Sambodhana (Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्राह्मण (प्रातिपदिक) + श्रेष्ठ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; कर्मधारयः—‘श्रेष्ठाः ब्राह्मणाः’; सम्बोधनार्थे (vocative sense) पाठान्तरसम्भवः

• प्रभासम्: Prabhāsa (holy place)
• प्रभासम्: Karma (Object/Goal)
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रभास (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; (तीर्थनाम)

• क्षेत्रम्: the sacred field/region
• क्षेत्रम्: Karma (Object/Apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: क्षेत्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; प्रभासम् इति विशेष्य-विशेषणभावः (apposition)

• उत्तमम्: excellent/supreme
• उत्तमम्: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उत्तम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषणम्—क्षेत्रम्

Speaker

Narrator addressing brāhmaṇas (Purāṇic narrator within Tīrthamāhātmya context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: brāhmaṇas (addressed as ‘brāhmaṇa-śreṣṭhāḥ’)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A pilgrim Moon-god arrives at the luminous coastal kṣetra of Prabhāsa: temples and shrines rise near the sea/river-mouth, flags flutter, brāhmaṇas welcome him; the air feels charged with sanctity.

Characters & Entities

• Candra (Moon)
• Prabhāsa-kṣetra

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Persistent pilgrimage to tīrthas culminates in reaching a divinely charged kṣetra where grace and transformation become accessible.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa-kṣetra is explicitly named as the ‘uttama kṣetra’ (supreme sacred region).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit rite is prescribed here; the verse emphasizes tīrtha-yātrā and arrival at Prabhāsa.