Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 33

Devanagari script

गृहीत्वा शिवसंस्कारं नरो भ्राम्यति भूतले । द्रष्टुं तीर्थान्यनेकानि पुण्यान्यायतनानि च

Transliteration

gṛhītvā śivasaṃskāraṃ naro bhrāmyati bhūtale | draṣṭuṃ tīrthānyanekāni puṇyānyāyatanāni ca

Translation

ശിവസംസ്കാരം സ്വീകരിച്ച മനുഷ്യൻ ഭൂതലത്തിൽ സഞ്ചരിച്ച് അനേകം തീർത്ഥങ്ങളും പുണ്യസ്ഥാനങ്ങളും ദർശിക്കുന്നു।

Word by Word

• गृहीत्वा: having received
• गृहीत्वा: Kriya (क्रिया; पूर्वक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ग्रह् (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund): “having taken/received”

• शिवसंस्कारम्: Śiva’s rite/consecration
• शिवसंस्कारम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शिव + संस्कार (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समासः (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः: शिवस्य संस्कारः)

• नरः: a man
• नरः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• भ्राम्यति: wanders
• भ्राम्यति: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भ्रम् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार, प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• भूतले: on the earth’s surface
• भूतले: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भूतल (प्रातिपदिक; भू + तल)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समासः

• द्रष्टुम्: to see
• द्रष्टुम्: Prayojana (प्रयोजन; purpose)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दृश् (धातु)
• Form: तुमुन्-प्रत्ययान्त (infinitive): “to see”

• तीर्थानि: pilgrimage places
• तीर्थानि: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• अनेकानि: many
• अनेकानि: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अनेक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषण (qualifying तीर्थानि)

• पुण्यानि: holy/meritorious
• पुण्यानि: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पुण्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषण (qualifying आयतनानि)

• आयतनानि: abodes/shrines
• आयतनानि: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: आयतन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-निपात

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) (deduced from Prabhāsa Khaṇḍa māhātmya narration style)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Vastrāpatha-kṣetra (Prabhāsa region)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A Śaiva pilgrim, marked by initiation signs (tripuṇḍra, rudrākṣa), sets out across varied landscapes—rivers, ghāṭas, temples—seeking darśana of many tīrthas and holy shrines.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva
• Tīrthas
• Āyatanas (shrines)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Śaiva consecration is linked to sacred travel: the devotee’s life becomes a pilgrimage of darśana—seeking holy places to deepen dharma and devotion.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse sits in the Vastrāpatha-kṣetra-māhātmya (Prabhāsa Khaṇḍa) while also endorsing a wider tīrtha-circuit of many sacred sites.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Receiving śiva-saṃskāra (a Śaiva consecration/observance) and undertaking tīrtha-darśana (visiting tīrthas and shrines).