Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 3

Devanagari script

ईश्वर उवाच । शृणु त्वं यत्पुरावृत्तं देवि स्वारोचिषेंतरे । आसीत्कश्चिद्दुराचारः कैवर्तो मत्स्यघातकः

Transliteration

īśvara uvāca | śṛṇu tvaṃ yatpurāvṛttaṃ devi svārociṣeṃtare | āsītkaściddurācāraḥ kaivarto matsyaghātakaḥ

Translation

自在天说道：“听我说，噢女神，往昔之事，发生在斯瓦罗契沙（Svārociṣa）之世。那时有一渔夫，行止邪恶，以杀鱼为业。”

Word by Word

• īśvaraḥ: Īśvara
• īśvaraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: īśvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (perfect), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन

• śṛṇu: listen
• śṛṇu: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √śru (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (imperative), परस्मैपद, मध्यमपुरुष (2nd person), एकवचन

• tvam: you
• tvam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yusmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• yat: that which
• yat: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन; सम्बन्ध-प्रत्यय (relative pronoun)

• purā-vṛttam: what happened long ago
• purā-vṛttam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: purā (अव्यय) + vṛtta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन; अव्ययीभाव-समास (पुरा = पूर्वम्, तेन वृत्‍तम्)

• devi: O goddess
• devi: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: devī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/vocative), एकवचन

• svārociṣe: in the Svārociṣa (Manvantara)
• svārociṣe: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: svārociṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/अधिकरण), एकवचन; मन्वन्तर-नाम

• antare: during/in the interval
• antare: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: antara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/अधिकरण), एकवचन; (कालवाचक)

• āsīt: there was
• āsīt: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √as (धातु)
• Form: लङ् (imperfect), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन

• kaścit: a certain (one)
• kaścit: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kaścid (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन; अनिश्चितवाचक सर्वनाम (indefinite pronoun)

• durācāraḥ: a wicked person (of bad conduct)
• durācāraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dur (उपसर्ग/प्रातिपदिक) + ācāra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारयः (दुष्टः आचारः यस्य/दुराचारः)

• kaivartaḥ: a fisherman
• kaivartaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kaivarta (प्रातिपदik)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन

• matsya-ghātakaḥ: killer of fish
• matsya-ghātakaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: matsya (प्रातिपदिक) + ghātaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (मत्स्यानां घातकः)

Speaker

Śiva (Īśvara/Maheśvara)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Puṣkara (Prabhāsa-kṣetra)

Type: kund

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Mahādevī (Pārvatī)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Shiva begins the ancient tale: in Svārociṣa’s era lived a wicked fisherman, a killer of fish—setting a somber moral tone before the coming miracle.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva (Īśvara)
• Devī
• Svārociṣa (Manvantara)
• Kaivarta (fisherman)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Even those of sinful livelihood become eligible for upliftment when a sacred history of a holy kṣetra is revealed and heard.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The narrative is set within the glorification of Prabhāsa-kṣetra, Śiva’s sacred domain.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit ritual is prescribed; the Lord begins a purāṇic exemplum to teach the kṣetra’s transformative power.