Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 21

Devanagari script

कार्यांतरेण यो गत्वा स्नानं तीर्थे समाचरेत् । न च यात्राफलं तस्य स्नानमात्रं फलं भवेत्

Transliteration

kāryāṃtareṇa yo gatvā snānaṃ tīrthe samācaret | na ca yātrāphalaṃ tasya snānamātraṃ phalaṃ bhavet

Translation

മറ്റൊരു കാര്യത്തിനായി പോയി തീർത്ഥത്തിൽ സ്നാനം ചെയ്താൽ, അവന്‍ യാത്രാഫലം ലഭിക്കുകയില്ല; സ്നാനമാത്രഫലമേ ഉണ്ടാകൂ.

Word by Word

• कार्य: task, business
• कार्य: —
• Type: Noun
• Root: कार्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; समासपूर्वपद (in compound)

• अन्तरेण: due to/with (some) other
• अन्तरेण: Hetu (Cause/हेतु)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अन्तरेण (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अव्ययीभावप्राय-प्रयोग (postposition-like: 'by means of/under the pretext of'); here: 'on account of/with (some) other business'

• यो: who
• यो: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; सर्वनाम (relative pronoun)

• गत्वा: having gone
• गत्वा: —
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: √गम् (धातु) + त्वा (क्त्वान्त)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (gerund/absolutive): 'having gone'

• स्नानम्: bath
• स्नानम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्नान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• तीर्थे: at the pilgrimage-place
• तीर्थे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन

• समाचरेत्: should perform
• समाचरेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम् + आ + √चर् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• न: not
• न: —
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निषेध-निपात

• च: and
• च: —
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय-निपात (conjunction)

• यात्रा: journey, pilgrimage
• यात्रा: —
• Type: Noun
• Root: यात्रा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; समासपूर्वपद (in compound)

• फलम्: the fruit of the pilgrimage
• फलम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: फल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; यात्रा-फल (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: 'fruit of the journey')

• तस्य: of him
• तस्य: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• स्नान: bathing
• स्नान: —
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्नान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; समासपूर्वपद (in compound)

• मात्रम्: only, mere
• मात्रम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मात्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; स्नान-मात्र (कर्मधारय/तत्पुरुष-प्राय: 'mere bathing'), विशेषण (फलम्)

• फलम्: fruit, result
• फलम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: फल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• भवेत्: would be
• भवेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √भू (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; परस्मैपदम्

Speaker

Īśvarī (Pārvatī) or a Devī addressed as 'Īśvari' (contextual narrator within Prabhāsakṣetra Māhātmya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Īśvarī/Mahādevī (addressed in surrounding verses)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A traveler arrives at Prabhāsa on worldly business, pauses at the sacred water, performs a brief bath without ritual markers; nearby, pilgrims with vows proceed toward the shrine, highlighting the contrast between incidental snāna and intentional yātrā.

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sacred acts bear fruit according to intention; without pilgrimage-saṅkalpa, one receives only the limited merit of the act performed.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

A general rule about any tīrtha, taught within Prabhāsakṣetra Māhātmya.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Snāna at a tīrtha done incidentally yields snāna-phala, not yātrā-phala; undertake pilgrimage with proper purpose.