Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 2

Devanagari script

इतिहासं पुरावृत्तं वर्णयिष्ये मनोहरम् । तीर्थक्षेत्रादिदेवानामृषीणां संशयापहम्

Transliteration

itihāsaṃ purāvṛttaṃ varṇayiṣye manoharam | tīrthakṣetrādidevānāmṛṣīṇāṃ saṃśayāpaham

Translation

நான் ஒரு மனம்கவரும் பழம்பெரும் வரலாற்றை விவரிப்பேன்; அது தீர்த்தங்கள், புனிதக் க்ஷேத்திரங்கள், அவற்றின் அதிஷ்டாத்ரி தேவதைகள் குறித்து முனிவர்களின் ஐயங்களை நீக்கும்.

Word by Word

• इतिहासम्: history, legend
• इतिहासम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: इतिहास (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• पुरावृत्तम्: ancient, occurred long ago
• पुरावृत्तम्: Visheshana (Adjectival modifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पुरा (अव्यय) + वृत्त (कृदन्त; √वृत्)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; अव्ययीभाव (पुरा + वृत्तम् = formerly happened)

• वर्णयिष्ये: I will describe
• वर्णयिष्ये: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वर्णय् (धातु; √वर्ण् + णिच्)
• Form: लृट् (simple future), आत्मनेपदम्, उत्तमपुरुष, एकवचन

• मनोहरम्: charming
• मनोहरम्: Visheshana (Adjectival modifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मनोहर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण (of इतिहासम्)

• तीर्थक्षेत्रादिदेवानाम्: of the deities of sacred fords, holy places, etc.
• तीर्थक्षेत्रादिदेवानाम्: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठीसम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक) + क्षेत्र (प्रातिपदिक) + आदि (अव्यय/प्रातिपदिक) + देव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, बहुवचन; समासः—(तीर्थ-क्षेत्र-आदि)-देवाः, तेषाम् (genitive plural)

• ऋषीणाम्: of the sages
• ऋषीणाम्: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठीसम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ऋषि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, बहुवचन

• संशयापहम्: removing doubt
• संशयापहम्: Visheshana (Adjectival modifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: संशय (प्रातिपदिक) + अपह (कृदन्त; √हृ/अपह् ‘to remove’)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (संशयस्य अपहः = remover of doubt)

Speaker

Prahlāda

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Dvārakā (as narrative frame)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Sages (ṛṣis)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A storyteller-sage (Prahlāda) introduces an ancient, charming itihāsa; sages sit in a semicircle, some with questioning expressions now settling into clarity; symbolic icons of tīrtha (river, shrine, kṣetra boundary) appear as visual motifs.

Characters & Entities

• Prahlāda
• Ṛṣis

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Purāṇic sacred geography is grounded in narrative: stories clarify the nature of tīrthas, their deities, and the dharma connected with them.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The immediate narrative aims toward Dvārakā’s māhātmya, while also addressing the wider tīrtha-kṣetra world and its presiding divinities.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly; the verse announces an explanatory account meant to resolve doctrinal and tīrtha-related doubts.