Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 46

Devanagari script

व्यतीता इह चत्वारः शेषे मोक्षस्ततः परम् । एवमायुरिदं दीर्घमेवं शापाच्च कूर्मता

Transliteration

vyatītā iha catvāraḥ śeṣe mokṣastataḥ param | evamāyuridaṃ dīrghamevaṃ śāpācca kūrmatā

Translation

Hier sind vier Zeitabschnitte vergangen; im verbleibenden Rest kommt danach die Befreiung (Moksha). So wurde diese Lebensspanne verlängert—und so bin ich durch den Fluch im Zustand einer Schildkröte.

Word by Word

• vyatītāḥ: (have) passed/elapsed
• vyatītāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vi-ati-√i (धातु) → vyatīta (कृदन्त/भूतकृदन्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; भूतकृदन्त (क्त) ‘गत/अतीत’

• iha: here
• iha: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iha (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (locative adverb)

• catvāraḥ: four
• catvāraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: catvāri (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; संख्या (cardinal)

• śeṣe: in the remainder/at the end
• śeṣe: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śeṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन

• mokṣaḥ: liberation
• mokṣaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mokṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• tataḥ: thereafter/from that
• tataḥ: Apadana (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; तस्मात्/ततः (ablatival adverb)

• param: supreme/ultimate
• param: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: para (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; विशेषण (mokṣaṃ qualifies as ‘supreme’)

• evam: thus
• evam: Prakaraṇa (Manner/प्रकार)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: evam (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकारवाचक (manner adverb)

• āyuḥ: lifespan
• āyuḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: āyus (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• idam: this
• idam: Visheshya (Correlative/विशेष्य)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• dīrgham: long
• dīrgham: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dīrgha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; विशेषण (āyuḥ)

• evam: thus
• evam: Prakaraṇa (Manner/प्रकार)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: evam (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकारवाचक

• śāpāt: from a curse/because of a curse
• śāpāt: Hetu (Cause/हेतु)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śāpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/Ablative), एकवचन

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय (conjunction)

• kūrmatā: the state of being a tortoise
• kūrmatā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kūrma-tā (प्रातिपदिक: kūrma + ता-प्रत्यय)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; भाववाचक (abstract noun: ‘tortoise-ness’)

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) narrating (contextual attribution within Māheśvara-khaṇḍa)

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: nṛpa (king)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A cursed being in tortoise-form speaks with weary clarity about time elapsed and the remaining span before liberation; the atmosphere is twilight-like, contemplative, with a sense of long endurance.

Characters & Entities

• Mokṣa
• Śāpa (curse)
• Kūrma-state

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Karmic conditions may endure for long spans, yet mokṣa remains the promised end when the residue is exhausted.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific site is praised in this verse; it continues the personal karmic account within the larger tīrtha narrative.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it speaks of time passed, remaining duration, and liberation.