Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

ईश्वर उवाच । ततो गच्छेन्महादेवि चतुर्थं रुद्रमुत्तमम् । वृषभेश्वरनामानं कल्पलिंगं सुरप्रियम्

Transliteration

īśvara uvāca | tato gacchenmahādevi caturthaṃ rudramuttamam | vṛṣabheśvaranāmānaṃ kalpaliṃgaṃ surapriyam

Translation

ഈശ്വരൻ അരുളിച്ചെയ്തു—ഹേ മഹാദേവി, തുടർന്ന് ഉത്തമനായ നാലാം രുദ്രനിലേക്കു പോകണം; ‘വൃഷഭേശ്വരൻ’ എന്ന നാമധേയനായ അവന്റെ കല്പലിംഗം ദേവന്മാർക്ക് അതിപ്രിയം.

Word by Word

• ईश्वरः: Īśvara
• ईश्वरः: Karta (Speaker/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ईश्वर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा एकवचनम्

• उवाच: said
• उवाच: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच् (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचनम्, परस्मैपदम्

• ततः: then, thereafter
• ततः: Adhikarana (Source/Sequence)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; तसिल्-प्रत्ययान्त (from there/thereafter)

• गच्छेत्: should go
• गच्छेत्: Kriya (Injunctive/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: गम् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचनम्, परस्मैपदम्

• महादेवि: O Mahādevī
• महादेवि: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महादेवी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कर्मधारय-समास; स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन एकवचनम्

• चतुर्थम्: the fourth
• चतुर्थम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: चतुर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया एकवचनम् (Accusative singular)

• रुद्रम्: Rudra (form/shrine)
• रुद्रम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रुद्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया एकवचनम्

• उत्तमम्: excellent, supreme
• उत्तमम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उत्तम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया एकवचनम्

• वृषभेश्वरनामानम्: named Vṛṣabheśvara
• वृषभेश्वरनामानम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वृषभ + ईश्वर + नामन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (वृषभेश्वर इति नाम यस्य); पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया एकवचनम्

• कल्पलिङ्गम्: the Kalpa-liṅga
• कल्पलिङ्गम्: Karma (Appositional object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कल्प + लिङ्ग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास; नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया एकवचनम्

• सुरप्रियम्: dear to the gods
• सुरप्रियम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सुर + प्रिय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (सुराणां प्रियः); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया एकवचनम् (agreeing with लिङ्गम्)

Speaker

Īśvara (Śiva) (explicit)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Vṛṣabheśvara

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Mahādevī (Pārvatī)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Śiva (Īśvara) instructs Pārvatī to proceed to the fourth Rudra-shrine: a radiant liṅga named Vṛṣabheśvara, with subtle presence of devas offering flowers; a bull emblem or vṛṣabha motif suggests the name.

Characters & Entities

• Īśvara (Śiva)
• Devī
• Vṛṣabheśvara
• Rudra
• Liṅga
• Suras (gods)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Pilgrimage is framed as a dharmic progression—moving from one sanctified form of Rudra to the next with reverence.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Vṛṣabheśvara in Prabhāsa-kṣetra, identified as the fourth Rudra in the sequence.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

The instruction is yātrā (to go/visit) to Vṛṣabheśvara; the specific pūjā-vidhi is not detailed in this verse.