Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 38

Devanagari script

ततस्ते विबुधाः सर्वे तस्य वाक्येन हर्षिताः । प्रविष्टा गह्वरां कुक्षिं तस्यैव भय वर्ज्जिताः

Transliteration

tataste vibudhāḥ sarve tasya vākyena harṣitāḥ | praviṣṭā gahvarāṃ kukṣiṃ tasyaiva bhaya varjjitāḥ

Translation

അപ്പോൾ അവന്റെ വചനങ്ങളിൽ ഹർഷിതരായ എല്ലാ ദേവന്മാരും ഭയമൊഴിഞ്ഞവരായി, അവന്റെ ഗുഹാസദൃശമായ ഗഹന ഉദരത്തിലേക്ക് പ്രവേശിച്ചു।

Word by Word

• tataḥ: then
• tataḥ: Kāla (Time/काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (काल/अनन्तर) = indeclinable adverb ‘thereupon’

• te: they
• te: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन = Masculine, Nominative plural pronoun

• vibudhāḥ: the gods, wise ones
• vibudhāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vibudha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन = Masculine, Nominative plural

• sarve: all
• sarve: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjectival modifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन = Masculine, Nominative plural; विशेषणम् (vibudhāḥ)

• tasya: of him
• tasya: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, एकवचन = Genitive singular pronoun

• vākyena: by (his) words
• vākyena: Karaṇa (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vākya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd case), एकवचन = Neuter, Instrumental singular

• harṣitāḥ: delighted
• harṣitāḥ: Karta (Predicate adjective of subject)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: harṣita (कृदन्त/क्त-प्रातिपदिक; √hṛṣ हृष् ‘to rejoice’)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन = Masculine, Nominative plural; भूतकृदन्त (past passive participle)

• praviṣṭāḥ: having entered
• praviṣṭāḥ: Karta (Predicate adjective of subject)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pra-viṣṭa (कृदन्त/क्त-प्रातिपदिक; pra-√viś विश्)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन = Masculine, Nominative plural; भूतकृदन्त (entered)

• gahvarām: deep, cavernous
• gahvarām: Viśeṣaṇa (Adjectival modifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: gahvarā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन = Feminine, Accusative singular; विशेषणम् (kukṣiṃ)

• kukṣim: belly, womb
• kukṣim: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kukṣi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन = Masculine, Accusative singular

• tasya: of him
• tasya: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी, एकवचन = Genitive singular pronoun

• eva: indeed
• eva: Avadhāraṇa (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (अवधारण) = emphatic particle ‘indeed/just’

• bhaya: fear
• bhaya: Karma (Object with participle)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन = Neuter, Accusative singular; उपपद-सम्बन्धे (varjjitāḥ सह)

• varjjitāḥ: free from, devoid of
• varjjitāḥ: Karta (Predicate adjective of subject)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: varjjita (कृदन्त/क्त-प्रातिपदिक; √vṛj/√varj वर्ज् ‘to avoid’)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन = Masculine, Nominative plural; भूतकृदन्त; ‘भय-वर्जिताः’ = fear-free

Speaker

Īśvara (Śiva) (narrating after Samudra’s speech)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Ṛṣis/śaunaka-group (typical frame; not explicit in excerpt)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A group of devas, radiant yet relieved, enter a vast cavern-like interior (symbolic ‘belly’/guhā) after hearing a powerful assurance; the mood is protective and wondrous, with darkness turned safe by divine glow.

Characters & Entities

• Vibudhāḥ (Devas)
• Samudra/Sāgara

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Refuge granted by a protector removes fear; protection is portrayed as a stabilizing dharmic force.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Prabhāsa-kṣetra māhātmya continues to glorify the region by linking its sacred narrative to the ocean’s protective role.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it narrates the devas’ acceptance of refuge and the resulting freedom from fear.