Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 2

Devanagari script

महाप्रभावं लिङ्गं तद्दर्शनात्पापनाशनम्

Transliteration

mahāprabhāvaṃ liṅgaṃ taddarśanātpāpanāśanam

Translation

ആ ലിംഗം മഹാപ്രഭാവമുള്ളതാണ്; അതിന്റെ ദർശനം മാത്രത്താൽ പാപങ്ങൾ നശിക്കുന്നു.

Word by Word

• महाप्रभावम्: of great power
• महाप्रभावम्: विशेषण (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महा (प्रातिपदिक) + प्रभाव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कर्मधारय-समास; नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन (neuter nom/acc sg)

• लिङ्गम्: liṅga
• लिङ्गम्: विशेष्य (Head noun)
• Type: Noun
• Root: लिङ्ग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन (neuter nom/acc sg)

• तत्-दर्शनात्: by seeing it
• तत्-दर्शनात्: हेतु (Cause)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + दर्शन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष; नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी, एकवचन (ablative sg; ‘from/by the sight of that’)

• पाप-नाशनम्: destroyer of sin
• पाप-नाशनम्: विशेषण (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पाप (प्रातिपदिक) + नाशन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास; नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन (neuter nom/acc sg)

Speaker

Īśvara (Śiva) (contextual continuation)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Śāṇḍilyeśvara

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Mahādevī (Pārvatī)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A radiant liṅga in a small shrine; devotees stand with folded hands; a subtle aura emanates from the liṅga, visually ‘burning’ dark smoke-like sins into light; lamps flicker and bilva leaves are offered.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva-liṅga
• Śāṇḍilyeśvara

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Contact with the sacred (darśana) is portrayed as transformative—purifying one’s karmic burden through devotion.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Śāṇḍilyeśvara liṅga in Prabhāsa Kṣetra.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Darśana (going to see/encounter the liṅga) is the implied practice; no additional rite is specified.