Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

पुलस्त्य उवाच । ततो गच्छेन्नृपश्रेष्ठ चंद्रोद्भेदमनुत्तमम् । तीर्थं पापहरं नृणां निशानाथेन निर्मितम्

Transliteration

pulastya uvāca | tato gacchennṛpaśreṣṭha caṃdrodbhedamanuttamam | tīrthaṃ pāpaharaṃ nṛṇāṃ niśānāthena nirmitam

Translation

പുലസ്ത്യൻ പറഞ്ഞു—ഹേ നൃപശ്രേഷ്ഠാ, തുടർന്ന് അനുത്തമമായ ചന്ദ്രോദ്ഭേദ തീർത്ഥത്തിലേക്ക് പോകണം; അത് മനുഷ്യരുടെ പാപം ഹരിക്കുന്നു, നിശാനാഥൻ (ചന്ദ്രദേവൻ) സ്ഥാപിച്ചതാണ്.

Word by Word

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

• उवाच: said
• उवाच: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √वच् (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect/लिट्), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• ततः: then
• ततः: Sambandha (Adverbial/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रम/अनन्तरार्थक (then/thereafter)

• गच्छेत्: should go
• गच्छेत्: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √गम् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• नृपश्रेष्ठ: O best of kings
• नृपश्रेष्ठ: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नृप (प्रातिपदिक) + श्रेष्ठ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (नृपाणां श्रेष्ठः)

• चंद्रोद्भेदम्: (to) Caṃdrodbheda
• चंद्रोद्भेदम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: चन्द्र (प्रातिपदिक) + उद्भेद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (चन्द्रस्य उद्भेदः)

• अनुत्तमम्: unsurpassed
• अनुत्तमम्: Visheshana (Adjectival modifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अनुत्तम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषणम् (superlative sense: unsurpassed)

• तीर्थम्: sacred ford/pilgrimage place
• तीर्थम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• पापहरम्: sin-removing
• पापहरम्: Visheshana (Adjectival modifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पाप (प्रातिपदिक) + हर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (पापं हरति)

• नृणाम्: of men/people
• नृणाम्: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/षष्ठी), बहुवचन

• निशानाथेन: by the lord of night (the Moon)
• निशानाथेन: Karana (Agent/Instrument in passive/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: निशा (प्रातिपदिक) + नाथ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (निशायाः नाथः = चन्द्रः)

• निर्मितम्: made/constructed
• निर्मितम्: Kriya (Predicate qualifier/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: निर् + √मा (धातु) + त (कृत् प्रत्यय)
• Form: भूतकाले क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (past passive participle); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘कृतम्/निर्मितम्’

Speaker

Pulastya

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Candrodbheda

Type: kund

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Nṛpaśreṣṭha (the king)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Pulastya instructs the king to proceed to a moon-founded tīrtha; above the mountain landscape, the Moon is depicted as a deity consecrating the waters with a silver glow.

Characters & Entities

• Pulastya
• Candrodbheda
• Tīrtha
• Candra (Moon)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Pilgrimage to a consecrated tīrtha, approached with faith, is portrayed as a means of pāpa-kṣaya (dissolution of sin) within Purāṇic dharma.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Candrodbheda Tīrtha, said to be established by Candra (the Moon).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

The instruction is to ‘go’ (gacchet) to the tīrtha; specific acts like snāna/dāna are not stated in this verse.