Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 65

Devanagari script

ब्रह्माण्डमानदण्डोऽयं पुरतो गिरिसत्तमः । व्रजन्त्याः सुरकार्येण मम विघ्नकरः स्थितः

Transliteration

brahmāṇḍamānadaṇḍo'yaṃ purato girisattamaḥ | vrajantyāḥ surakāryeṇa mama vighnakaraḥ sthitaḥ

Translation

“ഈ ഗിരിശ്രേഷ്ഠൻ ബ്രഹ്മാണ്ഡത്തിന്റെ മാനദണ്ഡംപോലെ; ദേവകാര്യത്തിനായി പോകുന്ന എന്റെ മുമ്പിൽ ഇത് വിഘ്നമായി നിലകൊള്ളുന്നു.”

Word by Word

• brahmāṇḍamānadaṇḍaḥ: the universe-measuring staff/pillar
• brahmāṇḍamānadaṇḍaḥ: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahmāṇḍa (प्रातिपदिक) + māna (प्रातिपदिक) + daṇḍa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष/निर्धारणार्थः: 'ब्रह्माण्डस्य मानः (परिमाणम्) यस्य सः दण्डः' (measuring-rod of the universe)

• ayam: this
• ayam: Karta (Deictic apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• purataḥ: in front
• purataḥ: Adhikarana (Location)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: puratas (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (देशवाचक) = indeclinable adverb; 'in front'

• giri-sattamaḥ: the best of mountains
• giri-sattamaḥ: Karta (Subject apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: giri (प्रातिपदिक) + sattama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: 'गिरिणां सत्तमः' (best among mountains)

• vrajantyāḥ: of (me) going / while going (gen.)
• vrajantyāḥ: Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: √vraj (धातु) + śatṛ (शतृ)
• Form: शतृ-प्रत्ययान्त वर्तमानकृदन्त (present active participle) स्त्रीलिङ्ग; षष्ठी (6th), एकवचन; 'of (her) who is going'

• sura-kāryeṇa: for the gods' task
• sura-kāryeṇa: Karana (Instrument/Reason)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sura (प्रातिपदिक) + kārya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: 'सुराणां कार्यम्' (work of the gods)

• mama: my
• mama: Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• vighna-karaḥ: an obstacle-maker
• vighna-karaḥ: Karta (Predicate nominative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vighna (प्रातिपदिक) + kara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; उपपद-तत्पुरुष: 'विघ्नं करोति' (one who causes obstacle)

• sthitaḥ: stands, is positioned
• sthitaḥ: Kriya (Predicative state)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √sthā (धातु) + kta (क्त)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विधेयभावे (as predicate: 'is standing/has stood')

Speaker

Sarasvatī Devī (river-goddess; inferred from immediate context ‘sā devī’)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: peak

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Implied audience; within the scene, the goddess speaks to herself/attendants (not specified)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: The goddess speaks, pointing toward a colossal mountain ahead, described as a cosmic measuring rod; she stands poised, resolute, on a divine errand, with the sea behind and the path blocked before her.

Characters & Entities

• Sarasvatī (Devī)
• Mountain (Girisattama)
• Gods (Sura)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Even divine undertakings meet resistance; the māhātmya portrays obstacles as part of cosmic order, shaping sacred places and stories.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Prabhāsa coastal region where Sarasvatī’s course encounters a significant mountain near the ocean.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; this verse is mythic narration explaining sacred topography.