Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 18

Devanagari script

इदं क्षेत्रं महादेवि प्रियं सूर्यस्य सर्वदा । सूर्यपर्वणिसंप्राप्ते कुरुक्षेत्राधिकं प्रिये

Transliteration

idaṃ kṣetraṃ mahādevi priyaṃ sūryasya sarvadā | sūryaparvaṇisaṃprāpte kurukṣetrādhikaṃ priye

Translation

Hỡi Đại Nữ Thần, thánh địa này luôn được Mặt Trời yêu quý. Khi đến kỳ lễ thiêng của Mặt Trời, hỡi người yêu dấu, công đức nơi đây còn vượt hơn cả Kurukṣetra.

Word by Word

• idam: this
• idam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; सर्वनाम (demonstrative pronoun) used adjectivally

• kṣetram: sacred field/place
• kṣetram: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṣetra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन

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

• priyam: dear
• priyam: Viśeṣaṇa (Predicate adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: priya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; विशेषण

• sūryasya: of the Sun
• sūryasya: Ṣaṣṭhī-sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sūrya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6), एकवचन

• sarvadā: always
• sarvadā: Kriyā-viśeṣaṇa (Adverbial modifier/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sarvadā (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (temporal adverb)

• sūrya-parvaṇi-saṃprāpte: when the Sun-festival/solar occasion has arrived
• sūrya-parvaṇi-saṃprāpte: Adhikaraṇa (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sūrya + parvan (प्रातिपदिक) + saṃ-prāp (धातु; सम्+प्राप्) → saṃprāpta (कृदन्त)
• Form: सप्तमी (7), एकवचन; नपुंसकलिङ्ग/अव्यक्त-लिङ्ग (locative absolute sense); क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (past passive participle) ‘saṃprāpta’ = ‘having arrived/occurred’; समासः: सūryaparvaṇi (सप्तमी-तत्पुरुष) + saṃprāpte (सप्तमी)

• kurukṣetra-adhikam: greater than Kurukṣetra
• kurukṣetra-adhikam: Viśeṣaṇa (Predicate adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kuru-kṣetra (प्रातिपदिक; कुरु + क्षेत्र) + adhika (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; विशेषण (comparative sense ‘more than’); समासः: कुरुक्षेत्र (षष्ठी/कर्मधारय-प्रचलित नाम) + अधिक (तत्पुरुष)

• priye: O beloved (lady)
• priye: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: priyā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8), एकवचन

Speaker

Skanda (deduced, Prabhāsa Māhātmya narration)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Sūrya-priya kṣetra (Sūryakṣetra in Prabhāsa)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Mahādevī/Devī

Visual Art Cues

Scene: At a solar parvan, the Sūrya-priya kṣetra blazes with heightened sanctity; pilgrims gather at dawn, performing arghya to the Sun, while the text’s comparison to Kurukṣetra is symbolized by a scale or twin landscapes.

Characters & Entities

• Sūrya
• Kurukṣetra

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Merit intensifies when sacred place and sacred time coincide; pilgrimage gains extraordinary potency on auspicious occasions.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa Kṣetra (Arkasthala context), especially during a Sun-related parva/observance.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

The verse implies observance/visit on Sūrya-parva; it does not specify a particular rite, but highlights timing for heightened merit.