Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 19

Devanagari script

ब्रह्मोवाच । बलवानेष भूपाल कालः कलयति स्वयम्

Transliteration

brahmovāca | balavāneṣa bhūpāla kālaḥ kalayati svayam

Translation

Brahmā said: “O king, mighty indeed is Time; Time itself brings all things to their measure and their end.”

Word by Word

• ब्रह्मा: Brahmā
• ब्रह्मा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahmā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative); एकवचन

• उवाच: said
• उवाच: Kriya (Main action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (Perfect); प्रथम-पुरुष; एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• बलवान्: powerful
• बलवान्: Visheshana (Qualifier of ‘kālaḥ’/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: balavat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-विभक्ति; एकवचन; विशेषण

• एषः: this
• एषः: Visheshya (Correlative to ‘kālaḥ’/विशेष्य)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-विभक्ति; एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• भूपाल: O king
• भूपाल: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhūpāla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; सम्बोधन-विभक्ति (Vocative); एकवचन

• कालः: Time
• कालः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा-विभक्ति; एकवचन

• कलयति: counts/measures/ordains
• कलयति: Kriya (Main action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kal (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present); प्रथम-पुरुष; एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• स्वयम्: by itself; on its own
• स्वयम्: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial modifier/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: svayam (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; आत्मार्थक क्रियाविशेषण (reflexive adverb)

Speaker

Brahmā (identified by ‘brahmovāca’)

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Audience (implied); internal listener is Indradyumna

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Brahmā instructs the king: Time is mighty and self-acting, bringing all to completion; the king appears humbled as cosmic imagery subtly surrounds them.

Characters & Entities

• Brahmā
• Indradyumna
• Kāla

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Time is a supreme force in the created order; therefore one must continually practice dharma rather than presume permanence of results.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

None; the verse is a universal doctrinal statement about kāla.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit ritual; it provides the metaphysical reason behind karmic change.