Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 4

Devanagari script

उपक्षिप्ता सनं यत्तु होतुरर्थे हिरण्मयम् । निषसाद स गर्तो ऽत्र हिरण्यकशिपुस्ततः

Transliteration

upakṣiptā sanaṃ yattu hoturarthe hiraṇmayam | niṣasāda sa garto 'tra hiraṇyakaśipustataḥ

Translation

Khi một tòa ngồi bằng vàng được đặt dành cho vị tế sư (hotṛ), thì Hiraṇyakaśipu liền ngồi xuống trong một hố tại nơi ấy.

Word by Word

• upakṣiptā: having been placed/put down
• upakṣiptā: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: upa-√kṣip (धातु) + kta (कृदन्त-प्रत्यय)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle)

• sanam: seat, sitting-place
• sanam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• yat: which/that
• yat: Sambandha (Relative/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yat (यद्-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; सम्बन्धसूचक सर्वनाम

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

• hotuḥ: of the priest (hotṛ)
• hotuḥ: Sambandha (Genitive/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hotṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), एकवचन

• arthe: for the purpose
• arthe: Hetu/Purpose (प्रयोजन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: artha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन; प्रयोजन/हेतौ

• hiraṇmayam: golden
• hiraṇmayam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: hiraṇmaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; विशेषण (sanam इत्यस्य)

• niṣasāda: sat down
• niṣasāda: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ni-√sad (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• saḥ: he
• saḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (तद्-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• gartaḥ: (in) a pit/hollow
• gartaḥ: Karta (Apposition/कर्ता-समानाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: garta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; उपपद-नाम (स्थान/गर्तः)

• atra: here
• atra: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atra (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक अव्यय (adverb of place)

• hiraṇyakaśipuḥ: Hiraṇyakaśipu
• hiraṇyakaśipuḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hiraṇya + kaśipu (प्रातिपदिके)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (हिरण्यस्य कशिपुः)

• tataḥ: then/thereupon
• tataḥ: Sambandha (Sequence/क्रम)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: काल/क्रमवाचक अव्यय (adverb)

Speaker

Īśvara (Śiva)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra (garta-sthāna, implied micro-site)

Type: ghat

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A golden seat prepared for the hotṛ; the daitya Hiraṇyakaśipu sits in a pit nearby—an unsettling inversion amid a luminous yajña pavilion.

Characters & Entities

• Hiraṇyakaśipu
• Hotṛ (Vedic priest)
• Yajña (implied)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The verse highlights how adharma can intrude even into sacred ritual settings, prompting later divine correction.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific tīrtha is named in the verse; it remains within the Prabhāsa māhātmya narrative.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

It mentions a golden seat arranged for the hotṛ in a yajña context, without prescribing a practice.