Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

ईश्वर उवाच । ततो गच्छेन्महादेवि रावणेश्वरमुत्तमम् । तस्माद्दक्षिणनैरृत्ये धनुषां षोडशे स्थितम्

Transliteration

īśvara uvāca | tato gacchenmahādevi rāvaṇeśvaramuttamam | tasmāddakṣiṇanairṛtye dhanuṣāṃ ṣoḍaśe sthitam

Translation

ಈಶ್ವರನು ಹೇಳಿದರು—ತದನಂತರ, ಓ ಮಹಾದೇವಿ, ಶ್ರೇಷ್ಠ ರಾವಣೇಶ್ವರದ ದರ್ಶನಕ್ಕೆ ಹೋಗಬೇಕು. ಅದು ಪೂರ್ವಸ್ಥಾನದಿಂದ ದಕ್ಷಿಣ-ನೈಋತ್ಯ ದಿಕ್ಕಿನಲ್ಲಿ ಹದಿನಾರು ಧನುಷ್ಯದ ದೂರದಲ್ಲಿ ಸ್ಥಿತವಾಗಿದೆ.

Word by Word

• ईश्वरः: Īśvara
• ईश्वरः: Karta (Speaker/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ईश्वर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन — Nominative singular

• उवाच: said
• उवाच: Kriya (Speech act/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच् (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन — ‘said’

• ततः: then
• ततः: Apadana/Time (Source/Time—adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (क्रियाविशेषण) — indeclinable ‘then/from there’

• गच्छेत्: should go
• गच्छेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: गम् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (optative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन — ‘should go’

• महादेवि: O great goddess
• महादेवि: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महादेवी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/सम्बोधन), एकवचन — Vocative singular

• रावण-ईश्वरम्: Rāvaṇeśvara (Lord of Rāvaṇa)
• रावण-ईश्वरम्: Karman (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रावण (प्रातिपदिक) + ईश्वर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन — Accusative singular

• उत्तमम्: excellent/supreme
• उत्तमम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उत्तम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन — Accusative singular; agrees with ‘रावण-ईश्वरम्’

• तस्मात्: from there
• तस्मात्: Apadana (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/पञ्चमी), एकवचन — Ablative singular (‘from that (place)’)

• दक्षिण-नैरृत्ये: in the southern-southwest direction
• दक्षिण-नैरृत्ये: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दक्षिण (प्रातिपदिक) + नैरृत्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन — Locative singular; direction phrase

• धनुषाम्: of bows (as a measure)
• धनुषाम्: Sambandha (Measure/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धनुस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), बहुवचन — Genitive plural (‘of bows’; measure)

• षोडशे: at sixteen
• षोडशे: Adhikarana (Extent/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: षोडश (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन — Locative singular; with implied ‘धनुषि/धनुषाम्’ measure: ‘at sixteen (bows)’

• स्थितम्: situated
• स्थितम्: Kriya (State/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्था (धातु)
• Form: क्त (past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन — ‘situated’; agrees with implied ‘लिङ्गम्/स्थानम्’ or with ‘रावण-ईश्वरम्’ as descriptive

Speaker

Īśvara (Śiva)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Rāvaṇeśvara

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Mahādevī (Pārvatī)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Śiva (Īśvara) instructs Mahādevī, pointing out the next shrine on the Prabhāsa sacred map; a pilgrim-path implied by direction and measured distance.

Characters & Entities

• Mahādevī (Pārvatī)
• Rāvaṇeśvara
• Liṅga (implied)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The māhātmya frames devotion as a guided pilgrimage, where moving through sacred geography becomes a form of worship.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Rāvaṇeśvara, a revered Śaiva shrine within the Prabhāsakṣetra circuit.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

A yātrā instruction: proceed to Rāvaṇeśvara, identified by direction and distance (sixteen dhanu).