Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 55

Devanagari script

कृते युगे पुष्कराणि त्रेतायां नैमिषं तथा । द्वापरे तु कुरुक्षेत्रं प्राभासिकं कलौयुगे

Transliteration

kṛte yuge puṣkarāṇi tretāyāṃ naimiṣaṃ tathā | dvāpare tu kurukṣetraṃ prābhāsikaṃ kalauyuge

Translation

କୃତଯୁଗରେ ପୁଷ୍କର ଶ୍ରେଷ୍ଠ, ତ୍ରେତାଯୁଗରେ ନୈମିଷ ତଥା; ଦ୍ୱାପରେ କୁରୁକ୍ଷେତ୍ର, ଏବଂ କଳିଯୁଗରେ ପ୍ରାଭାସ ତୀର୍ଥ ସର୍ବୋତ୍ତମ।

Word by Word

• kṛte: in the Kṛta (Satya) age
• kṛte: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṛta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; ‘कृतयुगे’ इत्यर्थे

• yuge: in the age
• yuge: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yuga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन

• puṣkarāṇi: Puṣkaras (holy places named Puṣkara)
• puṣkarāṇi: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: puṣkara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

• tretāyām: in Tretā (age)
• tretāyām: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tretā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन

• naimiṣam: Naimiṣa (forest/holy place)
• naimiṣam: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: naimiṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• tathā: likewise
• tathā: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (also/likewise)

• dvāpare: in Dvāpara (age)
• dvāpare: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvāpara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन; ‘द्वापरयुगे’ इत्यर्थे

• tu: but/and
• tu: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: विरोध/विशेषणार्थक-अव्यय (but/indeed)

• kuru-kṣetram: Kurukṣetra
• kuru-kṣetram: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kuru (प्रातिपदिक) + kṣetra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (kurūṇāṃ kṣetram)

• prābhāsikam: Prābhāsika (Prabhāsa region/holy place)
• prābhāsikam: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prābhāsika (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; ‘प्रभास-सम्बन्धि तीर्थम्’

• kalau: in Kali (age)
• kalau: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kali (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन

• yuge: in the age
• yuge: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yuga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन

Speaker

Skanda (deduced from section context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa (Kali-yuga pradhāna tīrtha)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A four-panel cosmic map of India’s sacred geography across yugas: Puṣkara in Kṛta, Naimiṣa in Tretā, Kurukṣetra in Dvāpara, and Prabhāsa in Kali—each panel showing its signature landscape and a radiant yuga emblem above.

Characters & Entities

• Puṣkara
• Naimiṣa
• Kurukṣetra
• Prabhāsa
• Kṛta Yuga
• Tretā Yuga
• Dvāpara Yuga
• Kali Yuga

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Different yugas highlight different supreme pilgrimage centers; for Kali Yuga, Prabhāsa is celebrated as especially efficacious.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa-kṣetra is explicitly praised as the key tīrtha for Kali Yuga.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

An implicit prescription of pilgrimage priority: in Kali Yuga, undertake Prabhāsa-yātrā for heightened merit.