Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 49

Devanagari script

अथापश्यत्स्वशिबिरं पुरंदरपुरोपमम् । सद्यो हिरण्मयीभूतं विचित्रविभवोज्ज्वलम्

Transliteration

athāpaśyatsvaśibiraṃ puraṃdarapuropamam | sadyo hiraṇmayībhūtaṃ vicitravibhavojjvalam

Translation

பின்பு அவன் தன் குடியிருப்பு முகாமை கண்டான்; அது புரந்தரன் (இந்திரன்) நகரைப் போல் இருந்தது; உடனே அது பொன்னாக மாறி, வியத்தகு செல்வச் சிறப்பால் ஒளிர்ந்தது।

Word by Word

• अथ: then
• अथ: Sambandha (Discourse marker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अनुक्रम/आरम्भ (then/now)

• अपश्यत्: he saw
• अपश्यत्: Kriya (Main verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √पश् (धातु)
• Form: लङ् (Imperfect); प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• स्वशिबिरम्: his own camp
• स्वशिबिरम्: Karman (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्व + शिबिर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (स्वस्य शिबिरम्)

• पुरंदरपुरोपमम्: like Indra’s city
• पुरंदरपुरोपमम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पुरंदरपुर + उपम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (पुरंदरस्य पुरम्) + उपम (like); ‘...उपम’ = ‘...सदृश’

• सद्यः: immediately
• सद्यः: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सद्यः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक (immediately)

• हिरण्मयीभूतम्: having become golden
• हिरण्मयीभूतम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: हिरण्मयी + भूत (प्रातिपदिक); √भू (धातु)
• Form: क्त (past participle) ‘भूत’; नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘हिरण्मयी-भूत’ = golden-become

• विचित्रविभवोज्ज्वलम्: shining with wondrous splendor
• विचित्रविभवोज्ज्वलम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: विचित्र + विभव + उज्ज्वल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (विचित्रः विभवः येन/यस्मिन्) + उज्ज्वल (shining)

Speaker

Narrator (contextual Purāṇic narrator; likely Sūta/Lomaharṣaṇa)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: The boy looks toward his humble camp and sees it instantly become a golden, Indra-like city—tents and structures shimmering, ornate and radiant.

Characters & Entities

• Purandara (Indra)
• Indra’s city (Amarāvatī)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Devotion rewarded by divine grace can manifest as tangible transformation—prosperity as a sign of dharmic favor.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse emphasizes the after-effect of worship at a Śivālaya rather than naming a particular tīrtha.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit ritual is stated; the focus is on the fruit (phala) of prior propitiation of Śiva.