Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 5

Devanagari script

यदा यदा भयार्त्तानि म्लेच्छस्पर्शात्समंततः । स्थानेष्वेतेषु तिष्ठंति तीर्थान्युक्तेषु सत्वरम्

Transliteration

yadā yadā bhayārttāni mlecchasparśātsamaṃtataḥ | sthāneṣveteṣu tiṣṭhaṃti tīrthānyukteṣu satvaram

Translation

เมื่อใดก็ตามที่ตีรถะทั้งหลายถูกความหวาดกลัวรุมเร้ารอบด้าน เพราะการสัมผัสของมเลจฉะ (ผู้ต่างธรรม) เมื่อนั้นพวกเขาย่อมรีบเร่งไปอาศัยและสถิตอยู่ ณ สถานที่ที่ได้กล่าวไว้แล้วนั้น

Word by Word

• यदा: whenever
• यदा: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यदा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, कालवाचक-अव्यय

• यदा: whenever
• यदा: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यदा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, पुनरुक्त-कालवाचक (reduplicated temporal adverb)

• भयार्त्तानि: distressed by fear
• भयार्त्तानि: Karta (Subject qualifier/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: भय (प्रातिपदिक) + आर्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषणम् (अधिगत-कर्तृ) तीर्थानि-शब्दस्य; ‘भयेन आर्तानि’

• म्लेच्छस्पर्शात्: from contact with mlecchas
• म्लेच्छस्पर्शात्: Apadana (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: म्लेच्छ (प्रातिपदिक) + स्पर्श (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी-विभक्ति (Ablative), एकवचन

• समन्ततः: on all sides; entirely
• समन्ततः: Adhikarana (Circumstance/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: समन्ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, परितः/सर्वतः-अर्थक (adverb)

• स्थानेषु: in places
• स्थानेषु: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्थान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative), बहुवचन

• एतेषु: in these
• एतेषु: Adhikarana (Location qualifier/अधिकरण-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषणम् स्थानेषु-शब्दस्य

• तिष्ठन्ति: stay; remain
• तिष्ठन्ति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्था (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन, परस्मैपद

• तीर्थानि: the sacred places
• तीर्थानि: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative), बहुवचन

• उक्तेषु: in the said/mentioned (places)
• उक्तेषु: Adhikarana (Location qualifier/अधिकरण-विशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच् (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषणम् स्थानेषु/एतेषु (उक्तेषु स्थानेषु)

• सत्वरम्: quickly; at once
• सत्वरम्: Kriya-vishesana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सत्वरम् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, शीघ्रार्थक क्रियाविशेषण (adverb)

Speaker

Pulastya

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Refuge-kṣetras of tīrthas (Arbuda and the named great kṣetras)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: King (Rājan)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Personified tīrthas—river-goddesses, sages, and luminous water-forms—fleeing from a darkened, chaotic landscape and gathering swiftly into protected sanctuaries marked by shining temples and guardian devas.

Characters & Entities

• Puṣkara
• Kurukṣetra
• Vārāṇasī (contextual from prior verse)
• Arbuda (contextual)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sacred presence is portrayed as resilient: when threatened, tīrtha-power concentrates in protected dharmic locations.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

It refers back to the previously named protected places (Puṣkara, Kurukṣetra, Vārāṇasī) and the Arbuda tīrtha-context.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit rite; it provides a theological rationale for seeking tīrthas in safeguarded locales.