Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 4

Devanagari script

ततो गंगासरिच्छ्रेष्ठा पूर्वसागरगामिनी । स्थापयामास तल्लिंगं शिवभक्तिपरायणा

Transliteration

tato gaṃgāsaricchreṣṭhā pūrvasāgaragāminī | sthāpayāmāsa talliṃgaṃ śivabhaktiparāyaṇā

Translation

തുടർന്ന് കിഴക്കൻ സമുദ്രത്തിലേക്ക് ഒഴുകുന്ന നദികളിൽ ശ്രേഷ്ഠയായ ഗംഗ, ശിവഭക്തിയിൽ പരായണയായി, ആ ലിംഗം സ്ഥാപിച്ചു।

Word by Word

• tataḥ: thereafter
• tataḥ: Adhikarana (Temporal/कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (क्रियाविशेषण) = indeclinable adverb; अर्थे: तस्मात्/अनन्तरम् (thereafter)

• gaṅgā-sarit-śreṣṭhā: Gaṅgā, the best of rivers
• gaṅgā-sarit-śreṣṭhā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gaṅgā (प्रातिपदिक) + sarit (प्रातिपदिक) + śreṣṭha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (gaṅgāyāḥ saritām śreṣṭhā) = ‘best of rivers, (namely) Gaṅgā’

• pūrva-sāgara-gāminī: going to the eastern ocean
• pūrva-sāgara-gāminī: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pūrva (प्रातिपदिक) + sāgara (प्रातिपदिक) + gāminī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समासः तत्पुरुषः (pūrvam sāgaram gacchatīti) = ‘going to the eastern ocean’

• sthāpayāmāsa: installed / caused to be set up
• sthāpayāmāsa: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sthā (धा॒तु) + ṇic (प्रेरण)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपदम्; causative sense (ṇijanta) = ‘caused to be established/installed’

• tat-liṅgam: that liṅga (emblem)
• tat-liṅgam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tat (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + liṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; समासः कर्मधारयः = ‘that liṅga’

• śiva-bhakti-parāyaṇā: devoted to Śiva-bhakti
• śiva-bhakti-parāyaṇā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śiva (प्रातिपदिक) + bhakti (प्रातिपदिक) + parāyaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समासः तत्पुरुषः = ‘devoted/wholly intent on devotion to Śiva’

Speaker

Śiva (deduced from surrounding Māhātmya narration)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Gaṅgeśvara

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Mahādevī (Pārvatī)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Gaṅgā, personified as a radiant goddess, installs (pratiṣṭhā) the Gaṅgeśvara-liṅga in Prabhāsa, surrounded by sages and ascetics; ritual vessels, flowers, and flowing water motifs emphasize her devotion to Śiva.

Characters & Entities

• Gaṅgā
• Śiva
• Liṅga (Gaṅgeśvara context)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Even the most sacred river embodies devotion by honoring Śiva; tīrthas are founded through bhakti expressed as consecration.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Gaṅgeśvara liṅga site within Prabhāsa Kṣetra.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Liṅga-sthāpana (installation of a Śiva-liṅga) is the central sacred act described.