Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 24

Devanagari script

कालंजरं प्रभासश्च तथा बद रिकाश्रमः । महालयस्तथोंकारक्षेत्रं वै पौरुषोत्तमम्

Transliteration

kālaṃjaraṃ prabhāsaśca tathā bada rikāśramaḥ | mahālayastathoṃkārakṣetraṃ vai pauruṣottamam

Translation

കാലഞ്ജരവും പ്രഭാസവും; അതുപോലെ ബദരികാശ്രമം; മഹാലയം; ഓംകാരക്ഷേത്രം; കൂടാതെ പൗരുഷോത്തമം—ഇവ നിശ്ചയമായും മോക്ഷമാർഗത്തിലേക്കുള്ള പുണ്യക്ഷേത്രങ്ങളാണ്.

Word by Word

• कालंजरम्: Kālañjara
• कालंजरम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कालंजर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; तीर्थ/पर्वतनाम

• प्रभासः: Prabhāsa
• प्रभासः: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रभास (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; तीर्थनाम

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Conjunction/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयार्थक-निपात

• तथा: likewise
• तथा: Sambandha (Adverb/अव्यय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकारवाचक/समुच्चयार्थक (likewise/also)

• बदरिकाश्रमः: Badarikāśrama
• बदरिकाश्रमः: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: बदरी (प्रातिपदिक) + आश्रम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (बदऱ्याः आश्रमः)

• महालयः: Mahālaya
• महालयः: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महालय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; तीर्थनाम

• तथा: also
• तथा: Sambandha (Adverb/अव्यय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयार्थक (also)

• ओंकारक्षेत्रम्: Oṃkāra-kṣetra (Omkareshwar region)
• ओंकारक्षेत्रम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ओंकार (प्रातिपदिक) + क्षेत्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (ओंकारस्य क्षेत्रम्)

• वै: indeed
• वै: Sambandha (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वै (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात (indeed/emphatic)

• पौरुषोत्तमम्: Pauruṣottama (Puri/Jagannātha area)
• पौरुषोत्तमम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुरुषोत्तम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; क्षेत्रनाम

Speaker

Skanda (deduced from Kāśīkhaṇḍa dialogue context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kālañjara; Prabhāsa; Badarikāśrama; Mahālaya; Oṃkāra-kṣetra; Pauruṣottama

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Frame-listener

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A sixfold sacred panorama: rugged Kālañjara hill-fort/peak shrine; Prabhāsa seashore with Somnātha temple silhouette; snowy Badarī with ascetics; a solemn Mahālaya scene with ancestral rites; Oṃkāra island-temple on the Narmadā shaped like ‘Om’; and Pauruṣottama with Jagannātha’s grand temple and ratha imagery.

Characters & Entities

• Kālañjara
• Prabhāsa
• Badarikāśrama
• Mahālaya
• Oṃkārakṣetra
• Pauruṣottama

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The Purāṇa situates liberation within a sacred cartography—mountains, kṣetras, and āśramas are portrayed as spiritually catalytic environments.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa, Badarikāśrama, Oṃkārakṣetra, and Pauruṣottama are the most widely identifiable tīrthas in this verse.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct prescription; these kṣetras are typically approached for darśana, snāna where applicable, and deity worship according to local tradition.