Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 36

Devanagari script

गंगा च यमुना चैव तथा देवी सरस्वती । दृषद्वती गोमती च तापी कावेरिणी तथा

Transliteration

gaṃgā ca yamunā caiva tathā devī sarasvatī | dṛṣadvatī gomatī ca tāpī kāveriṇī tathā

Translation

O Gaṅgā e o Yamunā, e também a deusa Sarasvatī; o Dṛṣadvatī e o Gomatī; o Tāpi e igualmente o Kāverī.

Word by Word

• गंगा: Gaṅgā
• गंगा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गङ्गा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

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

• यमुना: Yamunā
• यमुना: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यमुना (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

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

• एव: also/indeed
• एव: Sambandha (Emphasis/अवधारण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारणार्थक-निपात

• तथा: likewise
• तथा: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (likewise)

• देवी: the goddess (river)
• देवी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देवी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• सरस्वती: Sarasvatī
• सरस्वती: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सरस्वती (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• दृषद्वती: Dṛṣadvatī
• दृषद्वती: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दृषद्वती (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• गोमती: Gomatī
• गोमती: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गोमती (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

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

• तापी: Tāpī
• तापी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तापी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• कावेरिणी: Kāverī
• कावेरिणी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कावेरिणी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• तथा: likewise/and also
• तथा: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (likewise)

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) to the sages (deduced)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Vastrāpatha-kṣetra (as tīrtha-sāra invoking major rivers)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A divine assembly of river-goddesses: Gaṅgā and Yamunā in front, Sarasvatī with vīṇā, followed by personified rivers carrying water-pots and lotuses; they appear as if arriving to bless a coastal kṣetra, indicating ‘all rivers’ sanctify the place.

Characters & Entities

• Gaṅgā
• Yamunā
• Sarasvatī
• Dṛṣadvatī
• Gomatī
• Tāpi
• Kāverī

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Purāṇic dharma treats major rivers as living tīrthas; their remembrance and bathing are linked with sanctification.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Within Vastrāpathakṣetra-māhātmya, the text broadens the tīrtha-frame by invoking pan-Indian sacred rivers.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Implicitly, snāna (ritual bathing) in these rivers, elaborated in the subsequent verse.