Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 36

Devanagari script

निरीक्षितस्तृतीयेन चक्षुषा परमेष्ठिना । स्वभक्तं रक्षमाणेन भस्मसादभवत्क्षणात्

Transliteration

nirīkṣitastṛtīyena cakṣuṣā parameṣṭhinā | svabhaktaṃ rakṣamāṇena bhasmasādabhavatkṣaṇāt

Translation

Als der Höchste Herr mit seinem dritten Auge blickte – um seinen eigenen Devotee zu schützen – wurde Kāla in einem Augenblick zu Asche reduziert.

Word by Word

• nirīkṣitaḥ: having been seen/observed
• nirīkṣitaḥ: Karma (Object/कर्म) — implied (one who was seen)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nir-īkṣ (धातु) → nirīkṣita (कृदन्त)
• Form: कृदन्त (क्त/PPP), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; ‘निरीक्षितः’ = ‘seen/observed’

• tṛtīyena: by the third
• tṛtīyena: Karaṇa (Instrument/करण) — with cakṣuṣā
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tṛtīya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्ग (सामान्य-विशेषण), तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन; ‘by the third’

• cakṣuṣā: with the eye
• cakṣuṣā: Karaṇa (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: cakṣus (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन

• parameṣṭhinā: by Parameṣṭhin (the Supreme Lord/Brahmā)
• parameṣṭhinā: Karta (Agent/कर्ता) — of ‘seeing’
• Type: Noun
• Root: parameṣṭhin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन

• sva-bhaktam: his own devotee
• sva-bhaktam: Karma (Object/कर्म) — of rakṣamāṇena
• Type: Noun
• Root: sva (प्रातिपदिक) + bhakta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: ‘one’s own devotee’); पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• rakṣamāṇena: by (one) protecting
• rakṣamāṇena: Karta (Agent/कर्ता) — instrumental agent phrase
• Type: Adjective
• Root: rakṣ (धातु) → rakṣamāṇa (कृदन्त, शतृ/वर्तमान कृदन्त)
• Form: वर्तमान कृदन्त (शतृ), पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन; ‘while protecting’

• bhasma-sāt: to ashes, into ash-state
• bhasma-sāt: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: bhasman (प्रातिपदिक) + sāt (अव्यय/उपसर्गार्थ)
• Form: अव्ययीभाव-समास; अव्यय, क्रियाविशेषणार्थ (‘to ashes/into ash-state’)

• abhavat: became
• abhavat: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: bhū (धातु)
• Form: लङ् (Imperfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• kṣaṇāt: in a moment, instantly
• kṣaṇāt: Apādāna/Avadhi (Ablative of time-limit/अपादान-काल)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṣaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th), एकवचन; अपादानार्थ (‘within/from a moment’)

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) narrating

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kedāra/Kedāranātha

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Śiva’s third eye opens; a beam of blazing tejas reduces Kāla to ash instantly while the devotee is shielded behind the Lord’s aura.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva (third eye)
• Kāla

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The Lord’s grace is not merely comforting—it is an active power that annihilates threats to the devotee.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kedāra, where Śiva’s immediate protective presence is dramatized through the third-eye motif.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct ritual; the verse emphasizes śaraṇāgati (taking refuge) and divine guardianship.