Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 81

Devanagari script

पालयिष्ये प्रजाश्चेति पूर्वं ते समयः कृतः । तांस्तथावादिनः सर्वान्ब्रह्मर्षीनब्रवीत्तदा

Transliteration

pālayiṣye prajāśceti pūrvaṃ te samayaḥ kṛtaḥ | tāṃstathāvādinaḥ sarvānbrahmarṣīnabravīttadā

Translation

‘ಪ್ರಜೆಗಳನ್ನು ಪಾಲಿಸುವೆ’ ಎಂಬುದು ನೀನು ಹಿಂದೆ ಮಾಡಿದ ಒಪ್ಪಂದ. ಆಗ ಅವನು ಹಾಗೆ ಹೇಳಿದ ಎಲ್ಲ ಬ್ರಹ್ಮರ್ಷಿಗಳಿಗೆ ಮಾತಾಡಿದನು.

Word by Word

• pālayiṣye: I will protect
• pālayiṣye: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pāl (पाल् धातु)
• Form: लृट् लकार (simple future), परस्मैपद; उत्तमपुरुष, एकवचन

• prajāḥ: subjects / people
• prajāḥ: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prajā (प्रजा प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; द्वितीया विभक्ति (accusative/कर्म), बहुवचन

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

• iti: thus
• iti: Sambandha (Quotation marker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (अव्यय)
• Form: उद्धरण/वाक्य-समाप्त्यर्थक-अव्यय (quotative particle)

• pūrvam: previously
• pūrvam: Sambandha (Time adjunct/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: pūrva (पूर्व प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (adverb: ‘formerly/before’)

• te: your
• te: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yusmad (युष्मद् सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम; षष्ठी विभक्ति (genitive/सम्बन्ध) एकवचन (your)

• samayaḥ: agreement / pledge
• samayaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: samaya (समय प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा विभक्ति, एकवचन

• kṛtaḥ: made
• kṛtaḥ: Kriya (Predicate participle/क्रिया)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kṛ (कृ धातु) + kta (क्त प्रत्यय)
• Form: कृदन्त (क्त); पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषण/विधेय (made)

• tān: those
• tān: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (तद् सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम; पुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• tathā-vādinaḥ: who spoke thus
• tathā-vādinaḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tathā (तथा) + vādin (वादिन् प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समास: तत्पुरुष (‘speakers of such words’); पुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषण-रूपेण (qualifying ‘brahmarṣīn’)

• sarvān: all
• sarvān: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (सर्व प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषण (qualifying the object group)

• brahmarṣīn: the brahmarṣis
• brahmarṣīn: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahmaṛṣi (ब्रह्मर्षि प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समास: तत्पुरुष (‘Brahman-sages’); पुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• abravīt: said
• abravīt: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: brū (ब्रू धातु)
• Form: लङ् लकार (imperfect/past), परस्मैपद; प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• tadā: then
• tadā: Sambandha (Time adjunct/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tadā (तदा अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (temporal adverb)

Speaker

Purāṇic narrator (introducing Vena’s reply to the sages)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Śaunaka-led ṛṣis (frame typical)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: The sages remind Vena of his earlier pledge to protect the people; Vena responds, addressing the assembled brahmarṣis—tension between remembered duty and present defiance.

Characters & Entities

• Brahmarṣi
• Vena

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Kingship is framed as a binding commitment to protect the people; breaking that trust is a breach of dharma.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsakṣetra is the overarching māhātmya context; the verse itself is about rajadharma.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it references a moral-social obligation (protection of prajā).