Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

ईश्वर उवाच । ततो गच्छेन्महादेवि महादेवीं महाप्रभाम् । बलातिबलदैत्यघ्नीं नाम्नेति प्रथितां क्षितौ

Transliteration

īśvara uvāca | tato gacchenmahādevi mahādevīṃ mahāprabhām | balātibaladaityaghnīṃ nāmneti prathitāṃ kṣitau

Translation

ഈശ്വരൻ അരുളിച്ചെയ്തു—അതിനുശേഷം, ഹേ മഹാദേവി, മഹാപ്രഭയുള്ള ആ മഹാദേവിയിലേക്കു പോകണം; അവൾ ഭൂമിയിൽ ‘ബലാതിബല ദൈത്യഘ്നീ’ എന്ന നാമത്തിൽ പ്രസിദ്ധയാണ്।

Word by Word

• īśvaraḥ: Īśvara (Lord Śiva)
• īśvaraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: īśvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन (Singular)

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

• tataḥ: then/thereafter
• tataḥ: Sambandha (Temporal adverb/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अव्यय-प्रयोग (adverb) ‘thereupon/then’

• gacchet: should go
• gacchet: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √gam (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular)

• mahādevi: O Mahādevī
• mahādevi: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahādevī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative), एकवचन (Singular)

• mahā-devīm: the great goddess
• mahā-devīm: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + devī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन (Singular)

• mahā-prabhām: of great splendor
• mahā-prabhām: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + prabhā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन (Singular)

• balātibala-daitya-ghnīm: slayer of the demon Balātibala
• balātibala-daitya-ghnīm: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: balātibala (प्रातिपदिक) + daitya (प्रातिपदिक) + ghnī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन (Singular)

• nāmnā: by name
• nāmnā: Karana (Means/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nāman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन (Singular)

• iti: thus
• iti: Sambandha (Quotation marker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; इति-शब्दः (quotative)

• prathitām: renowned
• prathitām: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √prath (धातु) + kta (कृत्) → prathita (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन (Singular)

• kṣitau: on earth
• kṣitau: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṣiti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन (Singular)

Speaker

Śiva (Īśvara)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Mahādevī (Balātibala-daityaghnī) shrine within Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Mahādevī/Devī (Pārvatī)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Śiva instructs the Goddess about proceeding to a supremely radiant Mahādevī shrine in Prabhāsa, renowned as the slayer of the demons Balā and Atibalā; the shrine glows with śakti-tejas.

Characters & Entities

• Mahādevī
• Balātibala (demons)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sacred geography is approached through devotion: visiting the Goddess’s shrine is presented as a dhārmic step on the pilgrimage path.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

A shrine of Mahādevī in Prabhāsa Kṣetra, renowned as Balātibala-daitya-ghnī.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

A pilgrimage directive: ‘one should go’ (gacchet) to the Goddess’s sacred presence for darśana and worship.