Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 25

Devanagari script

तच्च द्वादशभिर्लक्षैर्वत्सराणां प्रकीर्तितम् । षण्णवत्या सहस्रैस्तु द्वितीयं युगमुत्तमम्

Transliteration

tacca dvādaśabhirlakṣairvatsarāṇāṃ prakīrtitam | ṣaṇṇavatyā sahasraistu dvitīyaṃ yugamuttamam

Translation

Jenes erste Zeitalter wird als zwölf Lakhs von Jahren verkündet; und mit weiteren sechsundneunzigtausend wird das zweite, vortreffliche Yuga beschrieben.

Word by Word

• tat: that (period)
• tat: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular)

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

• dvādaśabhiḥ: by twelve
• dvādaśabhiḥ: Karaṇa (Instrument/measure/करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dvādaśa (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: त्रिलिङ्ग (Numeral; here neuter agreement by sense), तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental/3rd), बहुवचन (Plural)

• lakṣaiḥ: by lakhs
• lakṣaiḥ: Karaṇa (Instrument/measure/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: lakṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental/3rd), बहुवचन (Plural)

• vatsarāṇām: of years
• vatsarāṇām: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vatsara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), षष्ठी-विभक्ति (Genitive/6th), बहुवचन (Plural)

• prakīrtitam: is declared
• prakīrtitam: Kriyā-pūraka (Predicate/विधेय)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pra-√kīrt (कीर्त् धातु) + prakīrtita (क्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular); क्त-प्रत्ययान्त: ‘declared/mentioned’ (predicate)

• ṣaṇṇavatyā: by ninety-six
• ṣaṇṇavatyā: Karaṇa (Instrument/measure/करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ṣaṇṇavati (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine; numeral used with sahasra), तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental/3rd), एकवचन (Singular)

• sahasraiḥ: by thousands
• sahasraiḥ: Karaṇa (Instrument/measure/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sahasra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental/3rd), बहुवचन (Plural)

• tu: indeed/and
• tu: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: विरोध/विशेषार्थक अव्यय (particle: but/indeed)

• dvitīyam: second
• dvitīyam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dvitīya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular)

• yugam: age (yuga)
• yugam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yuga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular)

• uttamam: excellent
• uttamam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: uttama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced; exact speaker not explicit in snippet)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A sage points to a cosmic wheel (kāla-cakra) divided into yugas; numerals or symbolic lotuses indicate lakhs and thousands; stars and planetary bands surround the wheel, conveying vast duration.

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The Purāṇa frames dharma within vast cosmic time, reminding readers that moral decline and renewal unfold across measured yugas.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific tīrtha is named; the passage is cosmological (yuga-counting) within the Tīrthamāhātmya context.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None.