Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 54

Devanagari script

व्रतं तपः सहस्राब्दमेकः सम्यक्चरेन्नरः । पश्यत्यन्यो हृषीकेशं चातुर्मास्यं समाहितः

Transliteration

vrataṃ tapaḥ sahasrābdamekaḥ samyakcarennaraḥ | paśyatyanyo hṛṣīkeśaṃ cāturmāsyaṃ samāhitaḥ

Translation

ایک شخص ہزار برس تک درست طور پر ورت اور تپسیا انجام دے سکتا ہے؛ مگر دوسرا، دل کو محوِ عبادت کر کے، چاتُرمَاسیہ میں ہریشیکیش کے درشن کرتا ہے—اسی کو اعلیٰ تر کامیابی کہا گیا ہے۔

Word by Word

• vratam: a vow
• vratam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vrata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• tapaḥ: austerity
• tapaḥ: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tapas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd) (रूपं प्रथमा/द्वितीया समानम्), एकवचन

• sahasra-abdam: for a thousand years
• sahasra-abdam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sahasra (प्रातिपदिक) + abda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (sahasrasyābdam = thousand-year period)

• ekaḥ: one (person)
• ekaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: eka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• samyak: properly, rightly
• samyak: Kriya-visheshaṇa (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: samyak (अव्यय)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषण-अव्यय (adverb)

• caret: should practice/observe
• caret: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: car (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• naraḥ: a man
• naraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• paśyati: sees
• paśyati: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dṛś (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• anyaḥ: another (person)
• anyaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: anya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• hṛṣīkeśam: Hṛṣīkeśa
• hṛṣīkeśam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hṛṣīkeśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• cāturmāsyam: Cāturmāsya observance
• cāturmāsyam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: cāturmāsya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• samāhitaḥ: composed, concentrated
• samāhitaḥ: Karta (Subject-qualifier/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sam-ā-dhā (धातु) → samāhita (कृदन्त, क्त)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त, पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; विशेषणम्

Speaker

Skanda (deduced; exact speaker not in snippet)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Hṛṣīkeśa-darśana (Cāturmāsya)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A time-lapse motif: an ascetic’s thousand-year tapas symbolized by aging trees, turning seasons, and long rosary strands; contrasted with a single monsoon-season temple darśana of Hṛṣīkeśa by a tranquil devotee, bathed in sanctum light.

Characters & Entities

• Vrata
• Tapas
• Hṛṣīkeśa
• Cāturmāsya

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Duration and hardship of austerity are secondary; the supreme fruit is attained through steady devotion that grants divine darśana.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific tīrtha is named; the verse glorifies the sacred Cāturmāsya season and Hṛṣīkeśa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Proper practice of vrata and tapas is mentioned, but the verse emphasizes Cāturmāsya-focused contemplation leading to seeing Hṛṣīkeśa.