Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

पुलस्त्य उवाच । ततो गच्छेन्नृपश्रेष्ठ मार्कंडेयस्य चाश्रमम् । यत्र पूर्वं तपस्तप्तं मार्कंडेन महात्मना

Transliteration

pulastya uvāca | tato gacchennṛpaśreṣṭha mārkaṃḍeyasya cāśramam | yatra pūrvaṃ tapastaptaṃ mārkaṃḍena mahātmanā

Translation

പുലസ്ത്യൻ പറഞ്ഞു—അതിനുശേഷം, ഹേ നൃപശ്രേഷ്ഠാ, മാർകണ്ഡേയന്റെ ആശ്രമത്തിലേക്കു പോകണം; അവിടെ പൂർവകാലത്ത് മഹാത്മാവായ മാർകണ്ഡേയൻ തപസ്സു അനുഷ്ഠിച്ചു।

Word by Word

• पुलस्त्यः: Pulastya
• पुलस्त्यः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुलस्त्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• उवाच: said
• उवाच: Kriya (Main verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच् (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• ततः: then, thereafter
• ततः: Sambandha (Adverbial/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, अपादान/कालार्थक (from there/then)

• गच्छेत्: should go
• गच्छेत्: Kriya (Injunctive/Instruction/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: गम् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• नृप-श्रेष्ठ: O best of kings
• नृप-श्रेष्ठ: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नृप (प्रातिपदिक) + श्रेष्ठ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: ‘नृपाणां श्रेष्ठः’

• मार्कण्डेयस्य: of Mārkaṇḍeya
• मार्कण्डेयस्य: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मार्कण्डेय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक अव्यय (conjunction ‘and’)

• आश्रमम्: hermitage
• आश्रमम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: आश्रम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• यत्र: where
• यत्र: Adhikarana (Relative location marker/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: देशार्थक सम्बन्धबोधक अव्यय (relative adverb ‘where’)

• पूर्वम्: formerly
• पूर्वम्: Sambandha (Temporal adverb/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पूर्वम् (अव्यय)
• Form: कालार्थक अव्यय (adverb ‘formerly/before’)

• तपः: austerity, penance
• तपः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तपस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• तप्तम्: was performed (heated/undertaken)
• तप्तम्: Kriya (Predicate participle/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: तप् (धातु) → तप्त (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; ‘तपः’ इत्यस्य विशेषण/विधेय

• मार्कण्डेन: by Mārkaṇḍa
• मार्कण्डेन: Karana (Agent in passive/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मार्कण्ड (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन

• महात्मना: by the great-souled (sage)
• महात्मना: Karana (Qualifier of agent/करण-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महात्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन; विशेषण of ‘मार्कण्डेन’

Speaker

Pulastya

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Mārkaṇḍeya-āśrama

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: A king (nṛpaśreṣṭha)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Pulastya instructs a king on the next pilgrimage stop: a forest hermitage with thatched huts, sacrificial fire, deer nearby; a radiant sage (Mārkaṇḍeya) in meditation under a banyan.

Characters & Entities

• Pulastya
• Mārkaṇḍeya
• Mārkaṇḍeya Āśrama

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Pilgrimage is anchored in sanctified memory: visiting places hallowed by tapas connects the devotee to enduring dharma.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The hermitage (āśrama) of sage Mārkaṇḍeya, revered because of his ancient austerities.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

A travel/pilgrimage prescription: “one should go” (gacchet) to the āśrama; no specific snāna/dāna is stated here.