Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

प्रह्लाद उवाच । ततो गच्छेद्द्विजश्रेष्ठास्तीर्थं पापप्रणाशनम् । कृकलासमिति ख्यातं नृगतीर्थमनुत्तमम्

Transliteration

prahlāda uvāca | tato gaccheddvijaśreṣṭhāstīrthaṃ pāpapraṇāśanam | kṛkalāsamiti khyātaṃ nṛgatīrthamanuttamam

Translation

പ്രഹ്ലാദൻ പറഞ്ഞു—അതിനുശേഷം, ഹേ ദ്വിജശ്രേഷ്ഠന്മാരേ, പാപനാശകമായ ആ തീർത്ഥത്തിലേക്ക് പോകണം; അത് ‘കൃകലാസ’ എന്ന പേരിൽ പ്രസിദ്ധമായ, അനുത്തമ നൃഗതീർത്ഥമാണ്।

Word by Word

• प्रह्लादः: Prahlāda
• प्रह्लादः: Karta (Speaker/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रह्लाद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

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

• ततः: then
• ततः: Adverbial (Time/Sequence)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रम/अपादानार्थक (then/from there)

• गच्छेत्: should go
• गच्छेत्: Kriya (Injunctive/विधि)
• Type: Verb
• Root: गम् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (optative), प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• द्विजश्रेष्ठाः: best of the twice-born (brahmins)
• द्विजश्रेष्ठाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्विज (प्रातिपदिक) + श्रेष्ठ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; कर्मधारयः (श्रेष्ठा द्विजाः)

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

• पापप्रणाशनम्: destroyer of sins
• पापप्रणाशनम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पाप (प्रातिपदिक) + प्रणाशन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषणम्; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (पापस्य प्रणाशनम्)

• कृकलासम्: (called) ‘Kṛkalāsa’
• कृकलासम्: Samjna (Appellation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कृकलास (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; नाम (as a name)

• इति: thus
• इति: Discourse marker
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इति (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; उद्धरण/समाप्त्यर्थक (quotative particle)

• ख्यातम्: known as
• ख्यातम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ख्या (धातु) + क्त (प्रत्यय)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त-प्रत्यय), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘प्रसिद्धम्’

• नृगतीर्थम्: Nṛga’s tīrtha
• नृगतीर्थम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नृग (प्रातिपदिक) + तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (नृगस्य तीर्थम्)

• अनुत्तमम्: unsurpassed, excellent
• अनुत्तमम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अनुत्तम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषणम्

Speaker

Prahlāda

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kṛkalāsa-tīrtha (Nṛga-tīrtha)

Type: ghat

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Brāhmaṇas (dvija-śreṣṭhāḥ)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Prahlāda instructs brāhmaṇas to proceed to a famed ford; the tīrtha is shown with a stone ghat and clear water; a symbolic lizard (kṛkalāsa) motif appears, hinting at Nṛga’s curse and release.

Characters & Entities

• Prahlāda
• Kṛkalāsa Tīrtha
• Nṛga Tīrtha
• Dvija (Brāhmaṇa)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Pilgrimage is framed as a dharmic journey to specific tīrthas whose power is to dissolve sin and elevate the soul.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kṛkalāsa Tīrtha, also called Nṛga Tīrtha, in the Dvārakā Māhātmya.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

A directive to proceed to the tīrtha (gacchet)—a pilgrimage injunction, implying darśana and customary tīrtha rites such as snāna.