Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 83

Devanagari script

अमानाम रवे रश्मिसहस्रप्रमुखः स्थितः । तस्मिन्वसति येनेन्दुरमावास्या ततः स्मृता

Transliteration

amānāma rave raśmisahasrapramukhaḥ sthitaḥ | tasminvasati yenenduramāvāsyā tataḥ smṛtā

Translation

Am Tage, der Amā genannt wird, steht die Sonne da mit ihren tausend vornehmsten Strahlen; und weil man sagt, dass der Mond dann in ihr weilt, wird dieser Tag als Amāvāsyā in Erinnerung gehalten.

Word by Word

• अमानाम्: of the new-moon nights (amā)
• अमानाम्: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अमा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), बहुवचन

• रवे: in the Sun
• रवे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रवि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/अधिकरण), एकवचन

• रश्मिसहस्रप्रमुखः: chief among thousands of rays
• रश्मिसहस्रप्रमुखः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: रश्मि (प्रातिपदिक) + सहस्र (प्रातिपदिक) + प्रमुख (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (determinative: 'having rays as thousands as chief/foremost'); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा एकवचन; विशेषण (qualifying implied subject)

• स्थितः: situated, present
• स्थितः: Kriya (Predicative participle/विधेय)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स्था (धातु) → स्थित (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा एकवचन; विशेषण/विधेय

• तस्मिन्: in that (there)
• तस्मिन्: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक, सप्तमी (7th/अधिकरण), एकवचन

• वसति: dwells, resides
• वसति: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वस् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• येन: by which
• येन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), एकवचन; सम्बन्धे (by which)

• इन्दुः: the Moon
• इन्दुः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: इन्दु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन

• अमावास्या: the new-moon day (Amāvāsyā)
• अमावास्या: Karta (Subject complement/नाम)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अमा (प्रातिपदिक) + वास्य/वास (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (determinative: 'dwelling together/at amā' → new-moon day); स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा एकवचन

• ततः: therefore, from that
• ततः: Sambandha (Causal/ablatival modifier)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; तस्मात्-प्रभव (ablatival adverb: 'therefore/from that')

• स्मृता: is called, is remembered as
• स्मृता: Kriya (Passive predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्मृ (धातु) → स्मृत (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (PPP) स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा एकवचन; कर्मणि-प्रयोगे विधेय (is called/remembered)

Speaker

Prāpitāmaha

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Pitṛ-gaṇas; Mahārāja as hearer

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A cosmological explanation: the Sun blazing with ‘thousand rays’; the Moon dwelling within/near him—hence the remembrance of Amāvāsyā. Visualize a dark-moon sky with a radiant sun-disc, subtle moon presence as an inner glow or faint crescent absorbed.

Characters & Entities

• Sūrya (Ravi)
• Candra (Indu)
• Amāvāsyā

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Ritual time is grounded in sacred cosmology; Amāvāsyā is defined as a spiritually potent junction for dharmic acts.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No single tīrtha is named; the verse glorifies a sacred time (Amāvāsyā) relevant to tīrtha-based rites.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

It identifies Amāvāsyā as the proper calendrical marker; the śrāddha prescription follows next.