Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 8

Devanagari script

तदगाधं स्वच्छजलं नलिनीदलशोभितम् । हंससारसयुग्मैश्च चक्रवाकैश्च शोभितम्

Transliteration

tadagādhaṃ svacchajalaṃ nalinīdalaśobhitam | haṃsasārasayugmaiśca cakravākaiśca śobhitam

Translation

ആ സരസ് അഗാധമായിരുന്നു; അതിലെ ജലം സുതാര്യമായിരുന്നു; താമരയിലകളാൽ ശോഭിതവും, ഹംസങ്ങൾ, സാരസയുഗ്മങ്ങൾ, ചക്രവാകപ്പക്ഷികൾ എന്നിവകൊണ്ട് മനോഹരവുമായിരുന്നു.

Word by Word

• tat: that
• tat: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; सर्वनाम (demonstrative pronoun) used adjectivally

• agādham: not deep, shallow
• agādham: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a-gādha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; नञ्-समासार्थक-उपसर्गयुक्त (negated)

• svaccha-jalam: clear water
• svaccha-jalam: Karma/Adhikarana (Object/Locand—contextual)
• Type: Noun
• Root: svaccha (प्रातिपदिक) + jala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; कर्मधारय-समास (svacchaṃ jalaṃ)

• nalinī-dala-śobhitam: adorned with lotus-leaves
• nalinī-dala-śobhitam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nalinī (प्रातिपदिक) + dala (प्रातिपदिक) + śobhita (कृदन्त; √śubh/śobh (धातु) + क्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकर्मणि/भूतकृत (past passive participle) ‘śobhita’; तत्पुरुष-समास (nalinīdalaiḥ śobhitam)

• haṃsa-sārasa-yugmaiḥ: by pairs of swans and cranes
• haṃsa-sārasa-yugmaiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: haṃsa (प्रातिपदिक) + sārasa (प्रातिपदिक) + yugma (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), बहुवचन; द्वन्द्व-समास (haṃsāśca sārasaśca) + yugma ‘pair’; करण/सहकारक-भाव (instrumental)

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

• cakravākaiḥ: by cakravāka birds (ruddy geese)
• cakravākaiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: cakravāka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3), बहुवचन

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

• śobhitam: adorned, beautified
• śobhitam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śobhita (कृदन्त; √śubh/śobh (धातु) + क्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकर्मणि (past passive participle)

Speaker

Prahlāda (narration)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: (Unnamed) Saras near Dvārakā

Type: kund

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: (Implied) Purāṇic audience

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A deep, crystal-clear lake with broad lotus leaves; pairs of swans and cranes glide, cakravāka birds call at the water’s edge; the surface reflects sky and temple banners in the distance.

Characters & Entities

• Sacred lake (new saras)
• Haṃsa
• Sārasa
• Cakravāka

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Purāṇas portray sacred places as harmonizing nature and divinity—beauty becomes a sign of tīrtha-sanctity.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The newly created lake near Maya-saras in the Dvārakā Māhātmya is being described.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly; the verse provides tīrtha-lakṣaṇa (descriptive marks) that invite pilgrimage and snāna.