Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

ईश्वर उवाच । ततो गच्छेन्महादेवि क्षेमेश्वरमनुत्तमम् । तस्मादुत्तरकोणस्थं कपालेशाग्निगोचरे

Transliteration

īśvara uvāca | tato gacchenmahādevi kṣemeśvaramanuttamam | tasmāduttarakoṇasthaṃ kapāleśāgnigocare

Translation

อีศวรตรัสว่า “แล้วแต่จากนั้น โอ้มหาเทวี พึงไปยังพระกษเมศวรอันยอดยิ่งไร้ผู้เสมอ จากที่นั่น สถานนั้นอยู่ ณ มุมทิศเหนือ อยู่ในแนวสายตา/บริเวณของกปาเลศะและอัคนี”

Word by Word

• īśvaraḥ: Īśvara
• īśvaraḥ: Karta (Speaker/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: īśvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा, एकवचन

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect/परोक्षभूत), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• tataḥ: then; thereafter
• tataḥ: Kāla/Anukrama (Temporal/काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अव्यय-प्रकारः—काल/अनन्तर (then/thereafter)

• gacchet: should go
• gacchet: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: gam (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative/विधि), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• mahādevi: O great goddess
• mahādevi: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā-devī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन (8th/Vocative), एकवचन

• kṣemeśvaram: to Kṣemeśvara
• kṣemeśvaram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṣema-īśvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया, एकवचन

• anuttamam: unsurpassed; excellent
• anuttamam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: an-uttama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण—‘kṣemeśvaram’

• tasmāt: from there
• tasmāt: Apadana (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tasmāt (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक tad)
• Form: अव्यय; अपादानार्थक (ablatival adverb) ‘from there/from that’

• uttarakoṇastham: situated in the northern corner
• uttarakoṇastham: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: uttara-koṇa-stha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण—(liṅgam/स्थानम् implied) ‘situated in the northern corner’

• kapāleśāgnigocare: in the region called Kapāleśa-Agni-gocara
• kapāleśāgnigocare: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kapāla-īśa-agni-gocara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; सप्तमी, एकवचन; अधिकरण—‘in/at Kapāleśa-Agni-gocara’ (place-name)

Speaker

Īśvara (Śiva)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kṣemeśvara

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Mahādevī (Devī/Pārvatī)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Śiva (Īśvara) instructs Devī on the next pilgrimage stop: a stylized map-like scene with three shrine markers—Kṣemeśvara to the north, with Kapāleśa and an Agni-shrine/fire-altar as reference points.

Characters & Entities

• Īśvara (Śiva)
• Mahādevī (Pārvatī)
• Kṣemeśvara
• Kapāleśa
• Agni

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The Purāṇa frames pilgrimage as a guided journey through a network of sanctified shrines, each with its own saving power.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kṣemeśvara, located with reference to Kapāleśa and Agni within Prabhāsa Kṣetra.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

The prescription is to go and take darśana of Kṣemeśvara; no additional rite is specified here.