Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 18

Devanagari script

इदं क्षेत्रं महादेवि प्रियं सूर्यस्य सर्वदा । सूर्यपर्वणिसंप्राप्ते कुरुक्षेत्राधिकं प्रिये

Transliteration

idaṃ kṣetraṃ mahādevi priyaṃ sūryasya sarvadā | sūryaparvaṇisaṃprāpte kurukṣetrādhikaṃ priye

Translation

ഹേ മഹാദേവി, ഈ ക്ഷേത്രം എപ്പോഴും സൂര്യനു പ്രിയമാണ്. ഹേ പ്രിയേ, സൂര്യപർവ്വം വന്നാൽ ഇത് കുരുക്ഷേത്രത്തേക്കാൾ പോലും അധിക പുണ്യപ്രദമാകുന്നു.

Word by Word

• idam: this
• idam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; सर्वनाम (demonstrative pronoun) used adjectivally

• kṣetram: sacred field/place
• kṣetram: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṣetra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन

• mahādevi: O great goddess
• mahādevi: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā-devī (प्रातिपदिक; महा + देवी)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8), एकवचन

• priyam: dear
• priyam: Viśeṣaṇa (Predicate adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: priya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; विशेषण

• sūryasya: of the Sun
• sūryasya: Ṣaṣṭhī-sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sūrya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6), एकवचन

• sarvadā: always
• sarvadā: Kriyā-viśeṣaṇa (Adverbial modifier/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sarvadā (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (temporal adverb)

• sūrya-parvaṇi-saṃprāpte: when the Sun-festival/solar occasion has arrived
• sūrya-parvaṇi-saṃprāpte: Adhikaraṇa (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sūrya + parvan (प्रातिपदिक) + saṃ-prāp (धातु; सम्+प्राप्) → saṃprāpta (कृदन्त)
• Form: सप्तमी (7), एकवचन; नपुंसकलिङ्ग/अव्यक्त-लिङ्ग (locative absolute sense); क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (past passive participle) ‘saṃprāpta’ = ‘having arrived/occurred’; समासः: सūryaparvaṇi (सप्तमी-तत्पुरुष) + saṃprāpte (सप्तमी)

• kurukṣetra-adhikam: greater than Kurukṣetra
• kurukṣetra-adhikam: Viśeṣaṇa (Predicate adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kuru-kṣetra (प्रातिपदिक; कुरु + क्षेत्र) + adhika (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; विशेषण (comparative sense ‘more than’); समासः: कुरुक्षेत्र (षष्ठी/कर्मधारय-प्रचलित नाम) + अधिक (तत्पुरुष)

• priye: O beloved (lady)
• priye: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: priyā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8), एकवचन

Speaker

Skanda (deduced, Prabhāsa Māhātmya narration)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Sūrya-priya kṣetra (Sūryakṣetra in Prabhāsa)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Mahādevī/Devī

Visual Art Cues

Scene: At a solar parvan, the Sūrya-priya kṣetra blazes with heightened sanctity; pilgrims gather at dawn, performing arghya to the Sun, while the text’s comparison to Kurukṣetra is symbolized by a scale or twin landscapes.

Characters & Entities

• Sūrya
• Kurukṣetra

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Merit intensifies when sacred place and sacred time coincide; pilgrimage gains extraordinary potency on auspicious occasions.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa Kṣetra (Arkasthala context), especially during a Sun-related parva/observance.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

The verse implies observance/visit on Sūrya-parva; it does not specify a particular rite, but highlights timing for heightened merit.