Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 31

Devanagari script

तावन्मृतप्रजा नारी दुर्भगा दैत्यपुंगव । यावन्न पश्यते भक्त्या कलौ कृष्णप्रियां पुरीम्

Transliteration

tāvanmṛtaprajā nārī durbhagā daityapuṃgava | yāvanna paśyate bhaktyā kalau kṛṣṇapriyāṃ purīm

Translation

噢，阿修罗族（Dānava）之雄者，女子唯在迦利时代尚未以虔敬瞻礼克里希纳所钟爱的圣城——德瓦拉卡——之时，才被视为如同无子且命途不顺。

Word by Word

• tāvanmṛtaprajā: So long (she is) one whose children die
• tāvanmṛtaprajā: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tāvanmṛtaprajā (tāvat + mṛta + prajā)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• nārī: Woman
• nārī: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nārī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• durbhagā: Unfortunate
• durbhagā: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: durbhagā (dur + bhagā)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• daityapuṃgava: O Bull (Best) among Daityas
• daityapuṃgava: Sambodhana (Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: daityapuṃgava (daitya + puṃgava)
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular (Saptami/Shasthi Tatpurusha)

• yāvat: As long as
• yāvat: Kala (Time)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yāvat (अव्यय)
• Form: Adverb of time (Correlative)

• na: Not
• na: Negation
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: Negative Particle

• paśyate: Sees/Beholds
• paśyate: Kriya (Action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dṛś (paś) (धातु)
• Form: Lat Lakara (Present), Prathama Purusha, Eka Vachana (Atmanepada)

• bhaktyā: With devotion
• bhaktyā: Karana (Manner)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhakti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Instrumental, Singular

• kalau: In the Kali Yuga
• kalau: Adhikaraṇa (Time)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kali (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

• kṛṣṇapriyāṃ: Dear to Krishna
• kṛṣṇapriyāṃ: Visheshana (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kṛṣṇapriyā (kṛṣṇa + priyā)
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular (Shasthi Tatpurusha)

• purīm: City
• purīm: Karma (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: purī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

Speaker

Skanda (deduced from Prabhāsa Khaṇḍa Māhātmya-style narration)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Dvārakā (Kṛṣṇa-priyā purī)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: ‘Daityapuṅgava’ (foremost of Dānavas)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A woman pilgrim, previously sorrowful, stands at Dvārakā’s threshold with folded hands; as she beholds the city/temple with devotion, her aura brightens and symbols of prosperity (lamp, lotus, child) appear subtly, indicating removal of ‘durbhāgya’.

Characters & Entities

• Kṛṣṇa
• Kali-yuga
• Dvārakā
• Daitya

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Devotional darśana of Dvārakā—Kṛṣṇa’s beloved city—removes misfortune and reverses inauspiciousness, especially in Kali-yuga.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Dvārakā Purī, praised in the Dvārakā Māhātmya section of the Prabhāsa Khaṇḍa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit rite is prescribed here; the emphasized practice is bhakti-yukta darśana—beholding/visiting the sacred city with devotion.