Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 31

Devanagari script

त्रेतायुगे चतुर्विंशे रावणस्तपसः क्षयात् । रामं दाशरथिं प्राप्य सगणः क्षयमेयिवान्

Transliteration

tretāyuge caturviṃśe rāvaṇastapasaḥ kṣayāt | rāmaṃ dāśarathiṃ prāpya sagaṇaḥ kṣayameyivān

Translation

ഇരുപത്തിനാലാം ത്രേതായുഗത്തിൽ, തപസ്സിന്റെ ഫലം ക്ഷയിച്ചപ്പോൾ രാവണൻ ദാശരഥി ശ്രീരാമനെ കണ്ടുമുട്ടി, തന്റെ ഗണങ്ങളോടുകൂടെ നാശം പ്രാപിച്ചു।

Word by Word

• त्रेतायुगे: in the Tretā age
• त्रेतायुगे: Adhikaraṇa (Location/Time)
• Type: Noun
• Root: त्रेता-युग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Neuter, Locative, Singular) — कालाधिकरणम्; समासः: त्रेतायाः युगम्

• चतुर्विंशे: in the twenty-fourth (year/period)
• चतुर्विंशे: Adhikaraṇa (Time)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: चतुर्विंश (प्रातिपदिक; संख्या)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Locative, Singular) — (वर्षे/सम्वत्सरे) इति अध्याहारः; ‘in the twenty-fourth’

• रावणः: Rāvaṇa
• रावणः: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रावण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Masculine, Nominative, Singular)

• तपसः: of austerity
• तपसः: Ṣaṣṭhī-sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तपस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Neuter, Genitive, Singular)

• क्षयात्: from (its) exhaustion; due to decline
• क्षयात्: Apādāna/Hetu (Cause/Ablative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: क्षय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Masculine, Ablative, Singular) — हेत्वर्थ (from/because of)

• रामम्: Rāma
• रामम्: Karma (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: राम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Masculine, Accusative, Singular)

• दाशरथिम्: son of Daśaratha
• दाशरथिम्: Karma (Object apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दाशरथि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Masculine, Accusative, Singular) — रामस्य विशेषण/अपपद (appositive)

• प्राप्य: having reached/met
• प्राप्य: Pūrvakāla-kriyā (Prior action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्राप्य (कृदन्त; √आप् (धातु) + प्र, ल्यप्/य)
• Form: ल्यपन्त अव्यय (Gerund) — पूर्वक्रिया (having reached/encountered)

• सगणः: with his retinue
• सगणः: Karta (Subject qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स-गण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Masculine, Nominative, Singular) — रावणस्य विशेषणम्; समासः: गणेन सह

• क्षयम्: destruction/end
• क्षयम्: Gati/Karma (Goal/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: क्षय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Masculine, Accusative, Singular)

• एयिवान्: went/attained
• एयिवान्: Kriyā (Predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: एयिवस् (कृदन्त; √इ (धातु), लिट्-कृदन्त/परिप्रयोग)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; परोक्षभूतार्थे (perfect/periphrastic perfect sense) — ‘(सः) एयिवान्’ = ‘went/attained’

Speaker

Skanda (deduced from Prabhāsa Māhātmya discourse style)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Devī (as addressed: 'devi')

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A time-worn Rāvaṇa, his tapas-fruit depleted, confronts Rāma Dāśarathi on the battlefield; behind them, hosts of rākṣasas and vānaras surge like waves, while the unseen wheel of yuga-time turns above.

Characters & Entities

• Rāvaṇa
• Rāma Dāśarathi
• Daśaratha

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Austerity without dharma is finite; when merit is spent, adharma collapses and the divine upholds righteousness.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The passage occurs within Prabhāsa-kṣetra Māhātmya, linking epic events to the sanctity of Prabhāsa’s sacred narrative space.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; the verse teaches through historical-theological causality (tapas and karmic result).