Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 39

Devanagari script

आश्वयुक्छुक्लपक्षे या पंचमी पापनाशिनी । तस्यां संपूजयेद्रात्रौ खड्गमंत्रैर्विभूषितम्

Transliteration

āśvayukchuklapakṣe yā paṃcamī pāpanāśinī | tasyāṃ saṃpūjayedrātrau khaḍgamaṃtrairvibhūṣitam

Translation

ആശ്വയുജ ശുക്ലപക്ഷത്തിലെ പാപനാശിനി പഞ്ചമിയിൽ രാത്രിയിൽ, ഖഡ്ഗമന്ത്രങ്ങളാൽ അഭിമന്ത്രിതവും അലങ്കൃതവുമായ വാൾ വിധിപൂർവ്വം പൂജിക്കണം.

Word by Word

• आश्वयुक्-शुक्ल-पक्षे: in the bright fortnight of Āśvayuja
• आश्वयुक्-शुक्ल-पक्षे: अधिकरण (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: आश्वयुक् (प्रातिपदिक) + शुक्ल (प्रातिपदिक) + पक्ष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन; आश्वयुकः इति मासः (genitive relation) + शुक्लः इति पक्षः (karmadhāraya within)

• या: which (she/that)
• या: कर्ता (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; सम्बन्धसूचक सर्वनाम

• पञ्चमी: the fifth lunar day
• पञ्चमी: कर्ता (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पञ्चमी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; तिथि-नाम

• पापनाशिनी: destroyer of sins
• पापनाशिनी: विशेषण (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पाप (प्रातिपदिक) + नाशिनी (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; √नश्/नाश् (धातु) + णिनि)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; पापस्य नाशिनी इति (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष)

• तस्याम्: on that (day)
• तस्याम्: अधिकरण (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन

• संपूजयेत्: should worship fully
• संपूजयेत्: क्रिया (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: सम् + √पूज् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative/विधिलिङ्), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन

• रात्रौ: at night
• रात्रौ: कालाधिकरण (Temporal locative/कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रात्रि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन (वैकल्पिक रूप)

• खड्ग-मन्त्रैः: with sword-mantras
• खड्ग-मन्त्रैः: करण (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: खड्ग (प्रातिपदिक) + मन्त्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), बहुवचन; खड्गस्य मन्त्राः इति (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष)

• विभूषितम्: adorned
• विभूषितम्: विशेषण (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वि + √भूष् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Sureśvarī/Śubhe (divine feminine addressee)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A night pavilion lit by oil lamps; a decorated sword rests on a pedestal with flowers and vermilion; a priest recites ‘khadga-mantras’ while devotees stand in disciplined silence.

Characters & Entities

• Āśvayuja
• Śuklapakṣa
• Pañcamī
• Khaḍga
• Mantra

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sacred time (tithi) joined with mantra and devotion becomes a means for purification and dharmic empowerment.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The rite is taught within the Prabhāsakṣetra Māhātmya, thus linked to Prabhāsa’s sacred landscape.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Night worship of a sword on Āśvayuja bright-fortnight Pañcamī, using khaḍga-mantras.