Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 54

Devanagari script

व्रतं तपः सहस्राब्दमेकः सम्यक्चरेन्नरः । पश्यत्यन्यो हृषीकेशं चातुर्मास्यं समाहितः

Transliteration

vrataṃ tapaḥ sahasrābdamekaḥ samyakcarennaraḥ | paśyatyanyo hṛṣīkeśaṃ cāturmāsyaṃ samāhitaḥ

Translation

一人纵能如法修持誓戒与苦行千年；而另一人心神专注，于四月斋期（Cāturmāsya）得见主赫利希凯沙（Hṛṣīkeśa）之圣容——此被称颂为更高的成就。

Word by Word

• vratam: a vow
• vratam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vrata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• tapaḥ: austerity
• tapaḥ: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tapas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd) (रूपं प्रथमा/द्वितीया समानम्), एकवचन

• sahasra-abdam: for a thousand years
• sahasra-abdam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sahasra (प्रातिपदिक) + abda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (sahasrasyābdam = thousand-year period)

• ekaḥ: one (person)
• ekaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: eka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• samyak: properly, rightly
• samyak: Kriya-visheshaṇa (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: samyak (अव्यय)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषण-अव्यय (adverb)

• caret: should practice/observe
• caret: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: car (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• naraḥ: a man
• naraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• paśyati: sees
• paśyati: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dṛś (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• anyaḥ: another (person)
• anyaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: anya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• hṛṣīkeśam: Hṛṣīkeśa
• hṛṣīkeśam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hṛṣīkeśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• cāturmāsyam: Cāturmāsya observance
• cāturmāsyam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: cāturmāsya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• samāhitaḥ: composed, concentrated
• samāhitaḥ: Karta (Subject-qualifier/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sam-ā-dhā (धातु) → samāhita (कृदन्त, क्त)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त, पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; विशेषणम्

Speaker

Skanda (deduced; exact speaker not in snippet)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Hṛṣīkeśa-darśana (Cāturmāsya)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A time-lapse motif: an ascetic’s thousand-year tapas symbolized by aging trees, turning seasons, and long rosary strands; contrasted with a single monsoon-season temple darśana of Hṛṣīkeśa by a tranquil devotee, bathed in sanctum light.

Characters & Entities

• Vrata
• Tapas
• Hṛṣīkeśa
• Cāturmāsya

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Duration and hardship of austerity are secondary; the supreme fruit is attained through steady devotion that grants divine darśana.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific tīrtha is named; the verse glorifies the sacred Cāturmāsya season and Hṛṣīkeśa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Proper practice of vrata and tapas is mentioned, but the verse emphasizes Cāturmāsya-focused contemplation leading to seeing Hṛṣīkeśa.