Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 14

Devanagari script

अथागमंस्ततो विप्रास्तत्र क्षेत्रनिवासिनः । दक्षिणार्थं महदेवि शतशोऽथ सहस्रशः

Transliteration

athāgamaṃstato viprāstatra kṣetranivāsinaḥ | dakṣiṇārthaṃ mahadevi śataśo'tha sahasraśaḥ

Translation

Bấy giờ, hỡi Đại Nữ Thần, các brāhmaṇa cư trú trong thánh địa ấy kéo đến đó, từng trăm rồi đến ngàn người, để cầu nhận dakṣiṇā (lễ vật thù lao tế tự).

Word by Word

• अथ: then/now
• अथ: Sambandha (Discourse connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; आरम्भ/अनन्तरार्थक (particle: then/now)

• आगमन्: (they) came
• आगमन्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: आ√गम् (धातु)
• Form: लुङ् (Aorist), परस्मैपद; प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन; ‘they came’

• ततः: thereafter/from there
• ततः: Adhikarana (Temporal/स्थान-कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अपादान/काल/क्रमसूचक (from there/thereafter)

• विप्राः: brahmins
• विप्राः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विप्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक (locative adverb: there)

• क्षेत्रनिवासिनः: residents of the sacred field
• क्षेत्रनिवासिनः: Karta (Subject apposition/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: क्षेत्र + निवासिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (‘क्षेत्रस्य निवासिनः’)

• दक्षिणार्थम्: for (receiving) priestly fee/donation
• दक्षिणार्थम्: Prayojana (Purpose/प्रयोजन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दक्षिणा + अर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; चतुर्थी/षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषभावः (‘दक्षिणायै अर्थः’ = for the fee)

• महादेवि: O great goddess
• महादेवि: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महादेवी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन (8th), एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (‘महती देवी’)

• शतशः: by hundreds
• शतशः: Vishesana (Adverbial qualifier/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: शतशस् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकार/संख्या-वाचक (in hundreds)

• अथ: then
• अथ: Sambandha (Discourse connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; पुनरनन्तरार्थक (then)

• सहस्रशः: by thousands
• सहस्रशः: Vishesana (Adverbial qualifier/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सहस्रशस् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकार/संख्या-वाचक (in thousands)

Speaker

Śiva (deduced; addressing 'mahādevi')

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Mahādevī / Pārvatī (explicit 'mahādevi')

Visual Art Cues

Scene: After the yajña, streams of brāhmaṇas from the Prabhāsa region arrive in large numbers, hands extended in formal request for dakṣiṇā; the yajña pavilion stands behind them with extinguishing fires and arranged vessels.

Characters & Entities

• Brāhmaṇas (viprāḥ)
• Dakṣiṇā
• Prabhāsa-kṣetra
• Mahādevī

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Yajña is paired with dāna; supporting officiants through dakṣiṇā is treated as an integral limb of ritual dharma.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa-kṣetra, where residents gather around the completed sacrifice.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Giving dakṣiṇā (sacrificial honorarium/charity) to brāhmaṇas after the yajña.