Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 9

Devanagari script

एतस्मिन्नंतरे देवि भारतं क्षेत्रमुत्तमम् । कृतं त्रेता द्वापरं च तिष्यं युगचतुष्टयम्

Transliteration

etasminnaṃtare devi bhārataṃ kṣetramuttamam | kṛtaṃ tretā dvāparaṃ ca tiṣyaṃ yugacatuṣṭayam

Translation

Dalam hamparan ini, wahai Dewi, Bhārata ialah kṣetra suci yang paling utama. Di sini dihitung empat yuga—Kṛta, Tretā, Dvāpara, dan Tiṣya (Kali).

Word by Word

• etasmin: in this
• etasmin: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga/napuṃsakaliṅga, Saptamī vibhakti (Locative/7th), Ekavacana (Singular); sarvanāma (pronoun)

• antare: in the interval/within
• antare: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: antara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napumsakaliṅga (n.), Saptamī vibhakti (Locative/7th), Ekavacana (Singular)

• devi: O Goddess
• devi: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: devī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga (f.), Sambodhana vibhakti (Vocative), Ekavacana (Singular)

• bhāratam: Bhārata (India)
• bhāratam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhārata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napumsakaliṅga (n.), Prathamā vibhakti (Nominative/1st), Ekavacana (Singular)

• kṣetram: region/field
• kṣetram: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṣetra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napumsakaliṅga (n.), Prathamā vibhakti (Nominative/1st), Ekavacana (Singular); apposition to bhāratam

• uttamam: excellent/supreme
• uttamam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: uttama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napumsakaliṅga (n.), Prathamā vibhakti, Ekavacana; viśeṣaṇa of kṣetram/bhāratam

• kṛtam: Kṛta (age)
• kṛtam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kṛ (धातु) + ta (कृत् प्रत्यय)
• Form: Bhūta-kṛdanta (past passive participle), Napumsakaliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; here naming ‘Kṛta (yuga)’

• tretā: Tretā (age)
• tretā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tretā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga (f.), Prathamā vibhakti (Nominative/1st), Ekavacana (Singular); yuga-name

• dvāparam: Dvāpara (age)
• dvāparam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvāpara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napumsakaliṅga (n.), Prathamā vibhakti, Ekavacana; yuga-name

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Samuccaya-avyaya (conjunction)

• tiṣyam: Tiṣya (Kali age)
• tiṣyam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tiṣya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napumsakaliṅga (n.), Prathamā vibhakti, Ekavacana; yuga-name (Kali)

• yuga-catuṣṭayam: the set of four yugas
• yuga-catuṣṭayam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yuga (प्रातिपदिक) + catuṣṭaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napumsakaliṅga (n.), Prathamā vibhakti, Ekavacana; ṣaṣṭhī-tatpuruṣa ‘of yugas’

Speaker

Īśvara (Śiva)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Bhārata-kṣetra (as sacred field)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Devī

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Īśvara declares Bhārata the best kṣetra and enumerates the four yugas; a symbolic wheel of time (yuga-cakra) appears behind the landscape of Bhārata, indicating cyclical ages.

Characters & Entities

• Bhārata
• Kṛta-yuga
• Tretā-yuga
• Dvāpara-yuga
• Tiṣya (Kali)
• Devī

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Bhārata is upheld as the prime arena where yuga-dharma unfolds and where spiritual striving has decisive karmic consequence.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse praises Bhārata as a whole; in the chapter’s frame, this elevates the importance of tīrthas within Bhārata such as Prabhāsa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it is doctrinal/cosmological (yuga classification).