Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 9
अचंद्रमनहोरात्रमनग्न्यनिलभूतलम् । अप्रधानं वियच्छून्यमन्यतेजोविवर्धितम्
acaṃdramanahorātramanagnyanilabhūtalam | apradhānaṃ viyacchūnyamanyatejovivardhitam
চন্দ্র ছিল না, দিন-রাত্রিও ছিল না; অগ্নি, বায়ু, ভূমিও ছিল না—প্রকাশিত প্রধান তত্ত্বও নয়; আকাশ শূন্য, কেবল অবিভক্ত তেজই বিরাজ করছিল।
Skanda
Listener: Audience/sage
Scene: A timeless void: no moon, no alternation of day and night; the classical elements absent; an empty sky suffused with a single, formless radiance—like a pale, all-pervading glow without a source.
FAQs
The verse emphasizes the collapse of time, elements, and differentiation—pointing toward the transcendence that Mahātmya teachings often culminate in.
None explicitly; it continues the pralaya setting before the Kāśī-centered revelation.
None.