Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 4

Devanagari script

प्रभासे तु महादेवी प्राचीं पापप्रणाशिनीम् । नापुण्यो वेद देवेशि कर्मनिर्मूलनक्षमाम्

Transliteration

prabhāse tu mahādevī prācīṃ pāpapraṇāśinīm | nāpuṇyo veda deveśi karmanirmūlanakṣamām

Translation

“Ngunit sa Prabhāsa, O Mahādevī, naroon si Prācī, ang tagapuksa ng kasalanan. O Ginang ng mga deva, ang walang sapat na kabutihang-loob ay hindi tunay na nakakakilala sa kanya—sa kanya na may kapangyarihang bunutin hanggang ugat ang bunga ng karma.”

Word by Word

• prabhāse: in Prabhāsa
• prabhāse: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prabhāsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन; अधिकरण (locative of place)

• tu: but/indeed
• tu: Sambandha (Discourse particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle), विरोध/विशेषार्थक (but/indeed)

• mahādevī: O Mahādevī
• mahādevī: Sambodhana (Vocative/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā + devī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/सम्बोधन), एकवचन; संबोधन

• prācīm: Prācī (river)
• prācīm: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prācī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; कर्म (object)

• pāpa-praṇāśinīm: destroyer of sins
• pāpa-praṇāśinīm: Karma (Object-qualifier/कर्मविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pāpa + praṇāśinī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; विशेषण (qualifying prācīm)

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (Negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध (negation particle)

• apuṇyaḥ: sinful/without merit
• apuṇyaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a + puṇya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; कर्तृविशेषण (predicate adjective)

• veda: knows/understands
• veda: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vid (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present/लट्), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; √विद् = जानाति

• deveśi: O Lady, ruler of the gods
• deveśi: Sambodhana (Vocative/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva + īśī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/सम्बोधन), एकवचन; संबोधन

• karma-nirmūlana-kṣamām: capable of uprooting (evil) karma
• karma-nirmūlana-kṣamām: Karma (Object-qualifier/कर्मविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: karma + nirmūlana + kṣamā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; विशेषण (qualifying prācīm)

Speaker

Īśvara (Śiva)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prācī (Prabhāsa)

Type: kund

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Mahādevī (Devī)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Śiva points toward Prācī flowing through Prabhāsa; the water is depicted as luminous, with withered karmic ‘roots’ (vines/knots) being washed away; a few pilgrims with radiant auras perceive her clearly while others pass unaware, illustrating adhikāra.

Characters & Entities

• Prabhāsa
• Prācī (river/tīrtha)
• Mahādevī
• Deveśī

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sacred places are spiritually effective, yet their depth is grasped fully only by those refined through puṇya and devotion.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa-kṣetra’s Prācī tīrtha, praised as a destroyer of sin and uprooter of karmic bondage.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit rite; it emphasizes the tīrtha’s power and the pilgrim’s moral-spiritual qualification (puṇya).