Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 105

Devanagari script

शेषहव्येन यत्पृक्तमभिभूतं गुरोर्हविः । अधरोत्तरस्वारेण जज्ञे तद्वर्णवैकृतम्

Transliteration

śeṣahavyena yatpṛktamabhibhūtaṃ gurorhaviḥ | adharottarasvāreṇa jajñe tadvarṇavaikṛtam

Translation

ശേഷഹവ്യവുമായി കലർന്നപ്പോൾ ഗുരുവിന്റെ ഹവിസ് അമർന്നു പോയി; അപ്പോൾ അധര-ഉത്തര സ്വരങ്ങളിൽ നിന്നുള്ള ധ്വനിവികൃതിയാൽ വർണവൈകൃതം ഉണ്ടായി।

Word by Word

• शेषहव्येन: with the remaining oblation
• शेषहव्येन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शेष (प्रातिपदिक) + हव्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, तृतीया-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (शेषस्य हव्यम्)

• यत्: which (that)
• यत्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्; सम्बन्धक-सर्वनाम

• पृक्तम्: mixed
• पृक्तम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पृच् (धातु)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (PPP)

• अभिभूतम्: overpowered, dominated
• अभिभूतम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अभि+भू (धातु)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (PPP)

• गुरोः: of the teacher (Bṛhaspati)
• गुरोः: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गुरु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, षष्ठी-विभक्तिः (6th/Genitive), एकवचनम्

• हविः: the oblation
• हविः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हविस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्

• अधर-उत्तर-स्वारेण: by a low-and-high accent (intonation)
• अधर-उत्तर-स्वारेण: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अधर (प्रातिपदिक) + उत्तर (प्रातिपदिक) + स्वर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, तृतीया-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्; तत्पुरुष-समासः (अधरश्च उत्तरश्च—स्वरः/स्वरेण इति अर्थे)

• जज्ञे: was born, arose
• जज्ञे: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: जन् (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकारः, प्रथमपुरुषः, एकवचनम्; आत्मनेपदम्

• तत्: that
• तत्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्; विशेषणरूपेण

• वर्णवैकृतम्: a distortion of sound/phoneme
• वर्णवैकृतम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वर्ण (प्रातिपदिक) + वैकृत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (वर्णस्य वैकृतम्)

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) speaking to the sages (contextual attribution for Prabhāsa-khaṇḍa narration)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A preceptor’s oblation is shown being mixed with leftover havis; the air vibrates with visibly ‘warped’ syllables as low/high intonations clash, while sages react to the phonetic distortion.

Characters & Entities

• guru

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Ritual and sacred speech require precision; careless mixing and improper intonation can distort dharma-bearing utterance.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The broader narrative belongs to Prabhāsakṣetra Māhātmya, the glorification of Prabhāsa (Somnātha region), though this verse focuses on a ritual-phonetic etiology.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct prescription; it highlights the importance of correct handling of havis (oblations) and proper svara (intonation).