Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 27

Devanagari script

योंतकाले जलं पीत्वा कृत्वा तोयमयं वपुः । लोकमेकार्णवं चक्रे दृष्ट्या दृष्टेन चात्मना

Transliteration

yoṃtakāle jalaṃ pītvā kṛtvā toyamayaṃ vapuḥ | lokamekārṇavaṃ cakre dṛṣṭyā dṛṣṭena cātmanā

Translation

Đấng vào thời mạt kiếp đã uống cạn các dòng nước và mang thân bằng nước; chỉ bằng ánh nhìn và bằng Tự Ngã hiển lộ mà khiến thế gian thành một đại dương duy nhất—ở Prabhāsa, làm sao có thể nói về Ngài bằng lời lẽ thường tình?

Word by Word

• यः: who
• यः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — Relative pronoun, Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• अन्तकाले: at the time of the end
• अन्तकाले: Adhikarana (Time/कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अन्त + काल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (अन्तस्य कालः), पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन — Tatpurusha, Masculine, Locative, Singular

• जलम्: water
• जलम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन — Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• पीत्वा: having drunk
• पीत्वा: Purvakala-kriya (Prior action/पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: पा (धातु) + त्वा
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्ययकृदन्त — Absolutive (gerund), ‘having drunk’

• कृत्वा: having made
• कृत्वा: Purvakala-kriya (Prior action/पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु) + त्वा
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्ययकृदन्त — Absolutive (gerund), ‘having made’

• तोयमयम्: made of water
• तोयमयम्: Karma (Object qualifier/कर्म-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तोय + मय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (तोयेन मयम्), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन — Tatpurusha, Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• वपुः: body, form
• वपुः: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वपुस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन — Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• लोकम्: the world
• लोकम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: लोक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन — Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• एकार्णवम्: a single ocean (as one ocean)
• एकार्णवम्: Karma (Object qualifier/कर्म-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: एक + अर्णव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कर्मधारय-समास (एकः अर्णवः इव/एक-अर्णवः), पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन — Karmadharaya, Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• चक्रे: made
• चक्रे: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (परोक्षभूत), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन — Perfect, 3rd person, Singular (Ātmanepada)

• दृष्ट्या: by (his) sight
• दृष्ट्या: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दृष्टि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन — Feminine, Instrumental, Singular

• दृष्टेन: by what was seen; by the seen (means)
• दृष्टेन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: √दृश् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (क्त) ‘दृष्ट’ (seen), नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन — Past participle used substantively, Instrumental, Singular

• च: and
• च: Samuccaya (Connector/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, समुच्चयबोधक — Conjunction

• आत्मना: by himself; by the Self
• आत्मना: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: आत्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन — Masculine, Instrumental, Singular

Speaker

Unspecified (same questioning voice in the Prabhāsa-kṣetra narrative)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Ṛṣis

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Cosmic vision: at end-time the Lord drinks up the waters, becomes water-bodied, and by gaze makes the world an ocean—juxtaposed with the calm coastal Prabhāsa setting where sages struggle to speak of him in ordinary terms.

Characters & Entities

• Viṣṇu/Hari (implied)
• Pralaya (end-time dissolution)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The Lord who governs pralaya transcends limitation; references to ‘refuge’ in a tīrtha are meant to exalt the tīrtha and reveal divine līlā.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa-kṣetra, indirectly praised by contrasting its sanctity with the Lord’s cosmic power.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; the verse is cosmological-theological, not prescriptive.