Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 58

Devanagari script

पिंडतारकमित्येतत्प्राचीनं तीर्थमुत्तमम् । कुम्भकुक्षिगिरिस्थं तत्पित्र्ये कर्मणि सिद्धिदम्

Transliteration

piṃḍatārakamityetatprācīnaṃ tīrthamuttamam | kumbhakukṣigiristhaṃ tatpitrye karmaṇi siddhidam

Translation

ഇത് പ്രാചീനവും അത്യുത്തമവുമായ തീർത്ഥം ‘പിണ്ഡതാരകം’ എന്നു പ്രസിദ്ധം. കുംഭകുക്ഷി ഗിരിയിൽ സ്ഥിതമായ ഇത് പിതൃകർമ്മത്തിൽ, പ്രത്യേകിച്ച് പിണ്ഡദാനത്തിൽ, സിദ്ധി നൽകുന്നു।

Word by Word

• piṃḍa-tārakam: (the tīrtha called) “Piṇḍatāraka”
• piṃḍa-tārakam: Karta (Predicate name/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: piṃḍa (प्रातिपदिक) + tāraka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समास: तत्पुरुष (piṃḍasya tārakam / piṃḍaṃ tārakam—contextual); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• iti: thus
• iti: Sambandha (Quotation marker/इति)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (उद्धरण/इति-निपात)

• etat: this
• etat: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• prācīnam: ancient
• prācīnam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: prācīna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषण

• tīrtham: sacred ford/pilgrimage place
• tīrtham: Karta (Apposition/समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tīrtha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• uttamam: excellent, best
• uttamam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: uttama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषण

• kumbha-kukṣi-giri-stham: situated on (the) Kumbhakukṣi mountain
• kumbha-kukṣi-giri-stham: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kumbha (प्रातिपदिक) + kukṣi (प्रातिपदिक) + giri (प्रातिपदिक) + stha (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक, √sthā)
• Form: समास: तत्पुरुष (स्थाने/अधिकरणे) — 'situated on/at Kumbhakukṣi mountain'; नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषण

• tat: that (tīrtha)
• tat: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; संकेत

• pitrye: in ancestral (rites)
• pitrye: Adhikarana (Domain/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pitrya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण — 'in/with regard to ancestral (rites)'

• karmaṇi: in the rite/action
• karmaṇi: Adhikarana (Domain/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: karman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• siddhi-dam: granting success/fulfilment
• siddhi-dam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: siddhi (प्रातिपदिक) + da (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक, √dā)
• Form: समास: उपपद-तत्पुरुष (सिद्धिं ददाति); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषण

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) (deduced from Prabhāsakṣetramāhātmya narrative style)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Piṇḍatāraka

Type: kund

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A hill-tīrtha with a small water-body or sacred spot where pilgrims offer piṇḍas and tarpaṇa; priests guide rites; the atmosphere is solemn, compassionate, and ancestral.

Characters & Entities

• Piṇḍatāraka Tīrtha
• Kumbhakukṣi-giri
• Pitṛs (ancestors)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Service to one’s ancestors through dharmic rites, when done at a praised tīrtha, becomes especially fruitful and purifying.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Piṇḍatāraka Tīrtha, located on Kumbhakukṣi-giri within Prabhāsa-kṣetra.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Pitṛ-karman—ancestral rites such as śrāddha and piṇḍa-offerings—are indicated as attaining siddhi here.