Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 3

Devanagari script

तस्य कल्पः पुरा प्रोक्तः पातालोत्तरसंग्रहे । तत्र लिंगान्यनेकानि सिद्धस्थानानि षोडश

Transliteration

tasya kalpaḥ purā proktaḥ pātālottarasaṃgrahe | tatra liṃgānyanekāni siddhasthānāni ṣoḍaśa

Translation

അതിന്റെ പുണ്യവൃത്താന്തം മുൻപ് ‘പാതാലോത്തര-സംഗ്രഹ’ത്തിൽ പ്രസ്താവിക്കപ്പെട്ടിരിക്കുന്നു. അവിടെ അനേകം ലിംഗങ്ങളും സിദ്ധന്മാരുടെ പതിനാറു സ്ഥാനങ്ങളും ഉണ്ട്.

Word by Word

• तस्य: of that/of him
• तस्य: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक, षष्ठी, एकवचन — genitive singular

• कल्पः: account/section (kalpa)
• कल्पः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कल्प (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — masculine nominative singular

• पुरा: formerly
• पुरा: Kāla (Time/काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पुरा (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (formerly)

• प्रोक्तः: was stated/taught
• प्रोक्तः: Kriyā (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र+वच् (धातु) → प्रोक्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (क्त); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — past passive participle; masculine nom sg

• पातालोत्तरसंग्रहे: in the Pātālottara-saṃgraha (a text/section)
• पातालोत्तरसंग्रहे: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पाताल + उत्तर + संग्रह (प्रातिपदिके)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (पातालोत्तरस्य संग्रहः ‘collection concerning Pātāla and the upper (regions)’); पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन — locative singular

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय (there)

• लिङ्गानि: liṅgas (Śiva-emblems)
• लिङ्गानि: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: लिङ्ग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन — neuter nominative plural

• अनेकानि: many
• अनेकानि: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अनेक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन — neuter nominative plural; विशेषणम्

• सिद्धस्थानानि: holy/attained places
• सिद्धस्थानानि: Karta (Apposition/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सिद्ध + स्थान (प्रातिपदिके)
• Form: कर्मधारय-समास (सिद्धानि स्थानानि); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन — neuter nominative plural

• षोडश: sixteen
• षोडश: Saṅkhyā (Number/संख्या)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: षोडश (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक/अव्ययवत्)
• Form: संख्या-विशेषणम्; (अव्ययवत्) प्रथमा, बहुवचनार्थे — numeral adjective ‘sixteen’ (used for count)

Speaker

Śiva (Īśvara)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Liṅga-maṇḍala of Dunnāville; Ṣoḍaśa-siddha-sthāna

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Mahādevī (Pārvatī)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A sacred mandala landscape: numerous small liṅgas under trees and on stone platforms, with sixteen marked siddha-pīṭhas; subtle aura and ascetics in meditation.

Characters & Entities

• Pātālottara-saṃgraha
• Śiva-liṅga
• Siddhas
• Sixteen Siddha-sthānas

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

A tīrtha’s authority is reinforced through lineage of teaching and cross-references, presenting the site as both a spiritual field and a siddha-landscape.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Dunnāville/Pātāla-opening region, marked by many Śiva liṅgas and sixteen Siddha-sthānas.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit ritual; the verse emphasizes the presence of liṅgas and siddha-abodes as sources of merit and attainment.