Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

पुलस्त्य उवाच । ततस्त्रिपुष्करं गच्छेदभीष्टं पद्मजस्य च । ब्रह्मणा तत्समानीतं पर्वतेऽर्बुदसंज्ञके

Transliteration

pulastya uvāca | tatastripuṣkaraṃ gacchedabhīṣṭaṃ padmajasya ca | brahmaṇā tatsamānītaṃ parvate'rbudasaṃjñake

Translation

പുലസ്ത്യൻ പറഞ്ഞു—അതിനുശേഷം പദ്മജനായ ബ്രഹ്മാവിനും പ്രിയമായ ത്രിപുഷ്കരത്തിലേക്ക് പോകണം; ആ പുണ്യതീർത്ഥം ബ്രഹ്മാവ് അർബുദനാമക പർവ്വതത്തിലേക്ക് കൊണ്ടുവന്നു സ്ഥാപിച്ചു।

Word by Word

• pulastyaḥ: Pulastya
• pulastyaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pulastya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा, एकवचन

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect/परोक्षभूत), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• tataḥ: then
• tataḥ: Sambandha (Temporal adverbial/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; काल/अनन्तरार्थक (then/thereafter)

• tripuṣkaram: Tripuṣkara (the three Puṣkaras)
• tripuṣkaram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tri-puṣkara (प्रातिपदिक; त्रि + पुष्कर)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन; गमनस्य कर्म (object of going)

• gacchet: should go
• gacchet: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: gam (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative/विधि), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• abhīṣṭam: desired
• abhīṣṭam: Karma (Object-qualifier/कर्मविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: abhīṣṭa (कृदन्त; √iṣ (धातु) + क्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘tripuṣkaram’ इत्यस्य विशेषणम्

• padmajasya: of Padmaja (Brahmā)
• padmajasya: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: padma-ja (प्रातिपदिक; पद्म + ज)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), एकवचन

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

• brahmaṇā: by Brahmā
• brahmaṇā: Kartr (Agent in passive/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; तृतीया (3rd/करण), एकवचन; कर्तृकरणभावे (agent/instrumental)

• tat: that
• tat: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘samānītam’ इत्यस्य सह (that)

• samānītam: brought/led together
• samānītam: Kriya (Resultative predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sam-ā-nī (धातु; √nī) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; भूतकर्मणि क्त-प्रत्यय (past passive participle)

• parvate: on the mountain
• parvate: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: parvata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; सप्तमी, एकवचन

• arbuda-saṃjñake: called Arbuda
• arbuda-saṃjñake: Adhikarana (Locative-qualifier/अधिकरणविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: arbuda-saṃjñaka (प्रातिपदिक; अर्बुद + संज्ञक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; सप्तमी, एकवचन; ‘parvate’ इत्यस्य विशेषणम्

Speaker

Pulastya

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Tripuṣkara

Type: kund

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: A king (recipient of pilgrimage instructions)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Pulastya instructs the king to go to Tripuṣkara; Brahmā is envisioned transporting/establishing the sacred tirtha upon Arbuda mountain.

Characters & Entities

• Pulastya
• Tripuṣkara
• Brahmā (Padmaja)
• Arbuda Mountain

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Pilgrimage is framed as entering a divinely established sacred geography—sites are sanctified by the deeds and choices of gods like Brahmā.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Tripuṣkara, presented as a cherished tīrtha of Brahmā and situated on Mount Arbuda.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

A direct injunction to visit (gacchet) Tripuṣkara—an explicit pilgrimage instruction.