Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

पुलस्त्य उवाच । ततो गच्छेन्नृपश्रेष्ठ भद्रकर्णं महाह्रदम् । त्रिनेत्राभाः शिला यत्र दृश्यंतेऽद्यापि भूरिशः

Transliteration

pulastya uvāca | tato gacchennṛpaśreṣṭha bhadrakarṇaṃ mahāhradam | trinetrābhāḥ śilā yatra dṛśyaṃte'dyāpi bhūriśaḥ

Translation

പുലസ്ത്യൻ പറഞ്ഞു—ഹേ നൃപശ്രേഷ്ഠാ! തുടർന്ന് ഭദ്രകർണ്ണം എന്ന മഹാഹ്രദത്തിലേക്ക് പോകണം; അവിടെ ഇന്നും ത്രിനേത്രന്റെ സാദൃശ്യമുള്ള അനേകം ശിലകൾ കാണപ്പെടുന്നു.

Word by Word

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

• उवाच: said
• उवाच: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच् (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार, प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• ततः: then
• ततः: Kriya-vishesana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रियाविशेषण

• गच्छेत्: should go
• गच्छेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: गम् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथम-पुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन, परस्मैपद; आदेशार्थे (injunctive advice)

• नृप-श्रेष्ठ: O best of kings
• नृप-श्रेष्ठ: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नृप (प्रातिपदिक) + श्रेष्ठ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन-विभक्ति (Vocative), एकवचन

• भद्रकर्णम्: Bhadrakarṇa (name)
• भद्रकर्णम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भद्र (प्रातिपदिक) + कर्ण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; (तीर्थ/ह्रद-नाम)

• महाह्रदम्: great lake
• महाह्रदम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महा (प्रातिपदिक) + ह्रद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• त्रिनेत्र-आभाः: resembling three eyes
• त्रिनेत्र-आभाः: Karta-visheshana (Subject-qualifier/कर्तृविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: त्रि (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक) + नेत्र (प्रातिपदिक) + आभा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषण (शिलाः इत्यस्य)

• शिलाः: stones/rocks
• शिलाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शिला (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• यत्र: where
• यत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; सम्बन्धबोधक-देशवाचक (relative locative adverb: where)

• दृश्यन्ते: are seen
• दृश्यन्ते: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दृश् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथम-पुरुष, बहुवचन; आत्मनेपद; कर्मणि-प्रयोग (passive sense)

• अद्य: even today
• अद्य: Kala-adhikarana (Time/कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अद्य (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक (temporal adverb: today/now)

• अपि: even
• अपि: Nipata (Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; ‘also/even’

• भूरिशः: in abundance/many
• भूरिशः: Kriya-vishesana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: भूरिशस् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; परिमाणवाचक-क्रियाविशेषण (adverb: abundantly/in many ways)

Speaker

Pulastya

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Bhadrakarṇa Mahāhrada

Type: kund

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Nṛpaśreṣṭha (a king; archetypal pilgrim-listener)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Sage Pulastya instructs a king; in the background a broad lake with many stones bearing a stylized three-eyed visage/mark, pilgrims approaching along a path.

Characters & Entities

• Pulastya
• Śiva (Trinetra)
• Bhadrakarṇa Mahāhrada

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Pilgrimage to a Śaiva tīrtha is praised as a direct encounter with Śiva’s presence manifested in the landscape.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Bhadrakarṇa Mahāhrada, a great sacred lake in the Arbuda Khaṇḍa context.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

A general injunction to go/visit the tīrtha is given; no specific snāna, dāna, or japa is stated in this verse.