Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 17

Devanagari script

क्षेत्राणि मोक्षदान्यंग त्रैलोक्यजानि नारद । देवाश्च पितरः सिद्धा ऋषयो मानवादयः

Transliteration

kṣetrāṇi mokṣadānyaṃga trailokyajāni nārada | devāśca pitaraḥ siddhā ṛṣayo mānavādayaḥ

Translation

“اے عزیز! یہ کشتروں (مقدس میدانوں) موکش دینے والے ہیں—اے نارَد! تینوں لوکوں میں مشہور۔ یہاں دیوتا، پِتر، سِدھ، رِشی اور انسان وغیرہ بھی موجود ہیں۔”

Word by Word

• kṣetrāṇi: sacred fields/holy places
• kṣetrāṇi: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṣetra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom./Acc.), बहुवचन

• mokṣa-dāni: granting liberation
• mokṣa-dāni: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: mokṣa (प्रातिपदिक) + dā (धातु) → dāna/dāyin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष (determinative: ‘giving mokṣa’), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom./Acc.), बहुवचन; kṣetrāṇi इत्यस्य विशेषण

• aṅga: O dear (sir)
• aṅga: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: aṅga (अव्यय/सम्बोधन-निपात)
• Form: सम्बोधन-निपात (vocative particle, affectionate address)

• trailokya-jāni: belonging to the three worlds
• trailokya-jāni: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tri-lokya (प्रातिपदिक) + ja (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष (determinative: ‘born in/pertaining to the three worlds’), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom./Acc.), बहुवचन; kṣetrāṇi इत्यस्य विशेषण

• nārada: O Nārada
• nārada: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nārada (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, संबोधन (Vocative), एकवचन

• devāḥ: gods
• devāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (Nom.), बहुवचन

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• pitaraḥ: manes/ancestors
• pitaraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pitṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (Nom.), बहुवचन

• siddhāḥ: Siddhas (perfected beings)
• siddhāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: siddha (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; √sidh)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (Nom.), बहुवचन

• ṛṣayaḥ: sages
• ṛṣayaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ṛṣi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (Nom.), बहुवचन

• mānava-ādayaḥ: humans and others
• mānava-ādayaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mānava (प्रातिपदik) + ādi (प्रातिपदik)
• Form: तत्पुरुष (mānava as first among: ‘humans and others’), पुल्लिङ्ग, प्रथमा (Nom.), बहुवचन

Speaker

Gautamī (Godāvarī)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Mokṣa-dāyaka kṣetra-samūha (collective)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A sacred field shimmering with unseen presences: devas above, pitṛs in subtle forms, siddhas in the sky, ṛṣis seated in meditation, humans gathered reverently as Gautamī indicates the kṣetras’ mokṣa-giving power.

Characters & Entities

• Nārada
• Devas
• Pitṛs
• Siddhas
• Ṛṣis
• Mānavas

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Kṣetras and tīrthas are portrayed as liberation-bestowing and cosmically significant, drawing divine and ancestral presences.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse praises sacred kṣetras in general within the Dvārakā-māhātmya setting, emphasizing their fame across the three worlds.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No specific ritual is prescribed; the emphasis is on the sanctity and liberating potency of kṣetras.