Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 19

Devanagari script

महर्लोकः क्षितेरूर्ध्वमेककोटिप्रमाणतः । कोटिद्वये तु संख्यातो जनो भूर्लोकतो जनैः

Transliteration

maharlokaḥ kṣiterūrdhvamekakoṭipramāṇataḥ | koṭidvaye tu saṃkhyāto jano bhūrlokato janaiḥ

Translation

Maharloka lies above the Earth, measured as one koṭi. And Janaloka is reckoned by those who know these measures as two koṭis above Bhūrloka.

Word by Word

• mahar-lokaḥ: Maharloka
• mahar-lokaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahar (प्रातिपदिक) + loka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• kṣiteḥ: of the earth
• kṣiteḥ: Sambandha (Reference point/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṣiti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (सम्बन्ध), एकवचन

• ūrdhvam: above
• ūrdhvam: Adhikarana (Spatial/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ūrdhva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय—क्रियाविशेषणम् (above)

• eka-koṭi-pramāṇataḥ: by the measure of one koṭi
• eka-koṭi-pramāṇataḥ: Sambandha (Measure/प्रमाण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eka (प्रातिपदिक) + koṭi (प्रातिपदिक) + pramāṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + -tas (तसिल्)
• Form: अव्यय—तसिल्-प्रत्ययान्त (ablatival adverb) ‘प्रमाणतः’ = ‘in measure/extent’

• koṭi-dvaye: in (the measure of) two koṭis
• koṭi-dvaye: Adhikarana (Measure-locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: koṭi (प्रातिपदिक) + dvi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (अधिकरण), एकवचन; द्विगु-समास—‘two koṭis’

• tu: but/indeed
• tu: Sambandha (Discourse particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय—निपात (contrast/indeed)

• saṃkhyātaḥ: is reckoned
• saṃkhyātaḥ: Kriya (Predicative/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: saṃkhyāta (कृदन्त; √khyā धातु with sam-)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त—‘is counted/considered’

• janaḥ: Janaloka (the world called Jana)
• janaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• bhūḥ-lokataḥ: from Bhūrloka (as reference)
• bhūḥ-lokataḥ: Apadana (Reference source/अपादान)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: bhūḥ (प्रातिपदिक) + loka (प्रातिपदिक) + -tas (तसिल्)
• Form: अव्यय—तसिल्-प्रत्ययान्त (from/with reference to)

• janaiḥ: by people
• janaiḥ: Karana (Agent-instrument in passive/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (करण), बहुवचन

Speaker

Skanda

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Brāhmaṇa interlocutor / ṛṣi-assembly (frame)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Two luminous strata above the solar-heavenly region: Maharloka as a serene sage-filled expanse; above it Janaloka as an even subtler realm with radiant, austere beings; distances indicated by symbolic numerals/markers.

Characters & Entities

• Skanda
• Maharloka
• Janaloka
• Bhūrloka

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The Purāṇa frames the universe as multi-tiered, reinforcing that spiritual effort and dharma correspond to higher states of being.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific tīrtha; the verse is part of a cosmological enumeration.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None mentioned.