Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 33

Devanagari script

गौतम उवाच । सर्वेषां क्षेत्रतीर्थानां महाशुभविनाशिनी । गौतमीयं महाभागा अस्यास्तापः क्व शाम्यति

Transliteration

gautama uvāca | sarveṣāṃ kṣetratīrthānāṃ mahāśubhavināśinī | gautamīyaṃ mahābhāgā asyāstāpaḥ kva śāmyati

Translation

ഗൗതമൻ പറഞ്ഞു—ഹേ മഹാഭാഗേ! ഈ ഗൗതമീ സർവ്വ ക്ഷേത്ര-തീർത്ഥങ്ങളുടെയും മഹാ അശുഭനാശിനിയാണ്; പിന്നെ അവളുടെ താപം എവിടെ ശമിക്കും?

Word by Word

• gautamaḥ: Gautama
• gautamaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gautama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• sarveṣām: of all
• sarveṣām: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), बहुवचन

• kṣetra-tīrthānām: of the sacred places and pilgrimage-fords
• kṣetra-tīrthānām: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṣetra (प्रातिपदिक) + tīrtha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), बहुवचन; समाहार-द्वन्द्व (collective)

• mahā-śubha-vināśinī: destroyer of great auspiciousness (i.e., of great merit/fortune)
• mahā-śubha-vināśinī: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + śubha (प्रातिपदिक) + vināśinī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; कर्मधारय/तत्पुरुष-प्रायः (महाशुभस्य विनाशिनी)

• gautamīyam: (that which is) of/pertaining to Gautamī
• gautamīyam: Visheshya/Visheshana (Apposition/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: gautamīya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन

• mahā-bhāgā: O greatly fortunate lady
• mahā-bhāgā: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + bhāgā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; संबोधनार्थे अपि (vocative sense possible)

• asyāḥ: of her
• asyāḥ: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन

• tāpaḥ: heat; suffering; affliction
• tāpaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tāpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• kva: where
• kva: Desha/Prashna (Interrogative/प्रश्न)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kva (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रश्नार्थक-अव्यय (interrogative adverb)

• śāmyati: subsides; is pacified
• śāmyati: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: śam (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन, आत्मनेपद

Speaker

Gautama

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Gautamī

Type: river

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: The assembled inquirers (implied) and Nārada (present)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Gautama proclaims Gautamī’s supremacy: the river-devi stands radiant, with miniature icons of various tīrthas/kshetras symbolically bowing or reflected in her waters, indicating ‘all tīrthas’ depend on her purifying power.

Characters & Entities

• Gautama
• Gautamī
• Kṣetras
• Tīrthas

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

A true tīrtha is a purifier for other tīrthas as well—its sanctity is portrayed as supremely resilient.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Gautamī is explicitly glorified as a principal purifier among all kṣetras and tīrthas.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct ritual; the verse establishes Gautamī’s supreme purificatory status as the basis for later practices.