Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 62

Devanagari script

शुक्र उवाच । तेन पूर्वं तपस्तप्तं नैमिषे दानवोत्तम । यावद्वर्षसहस्रांतं ध्यायमानेन शंकरम्

Transliteration

śukra uvāca | tena pūrvaṃ tapastaptaṃ naimiṣe dānavottama | yāvadvarṣasahasrāṃtaṃ dhyāyamānena śaṃkaram

Translation

Śukra said: “Formerly, O best of the Dānavas, he performed austerity at Naimiṣa, meditating on Śaṅkara (Śiva) until a thousand years were completed.”

Word by Word

• शुक्रः: Śukra
• शुक्रः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शुक्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• उवाच: said
• उवाच: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच् (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• तेन: by him/with that
• तेन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन

• पूर्वम्: formerly
• पूर्वम्: Adhikarana (Temporal/अधिकरण-काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पूर्व (प्रातिपदिक/अव्यय)
• Form: कालाव्यय (adverb: 'formerly/before')

• तपः: austerity/penance
• तपः: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तपस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन

• तप्तम्: performed (was done)
• तप्तम्: Kriya/Predicate (क्रिया/विधेय)
• Type: Verb
• Root: तप् (धातु)
• Form: क्त (past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; 'taptam' = 'performed/undertaken'

• नैमिषे: in Naimiṣa
• नैमिषे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नैमिष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन (स्थाननाम)

• दानवोत्तम: O best of the Dānavas
• दानवोत्तम: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दानव (प्रातिपदिक) + उत्तम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th), एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (उत्तमः दानवः)

• यावत्: up to
• यावत्: Adhikarana (Extent/अधिकरण-परिमाण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यावत् (प्रातिपदिक/अव्यय)
• Form: परिमाणाव्यय (extent: 'up to/as much as')

• वर्ष-सहस्र-अन्तम्: up to the end of a thousand years
• वर्ष-सहस्र-अन्तम्: Karma/Measure (परिमाण-कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वर्ष (प्रातिपदिक) + सहस्र (प्रातिपदिक) + अन्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; समासः (वर्षाणां सहस्रम् = वर्षसहस्रम्; तस्य अन्तः = वर्षसहस्रान्तः)

• ध्यायमानेन: by (him) meditating
• ध्यायमानेन: Karana (Instrument/Means/करण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ध्यै (धातु)
• Form: शानच् (present middle participle), पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन; 'while meditating'

• शंकरम्: Śaṅkara (Śiva)
• शंकरम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शंकर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

Speaker

Śukra

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Naimiṣāraṇya

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Vṛtra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Śukra narrates Indra’s former austerity: a long meditation on Śaṅkara in Naimiṣa forest, spanning a thousand years—stillness, ash, matted hair, and inner fire.

Characters & Entities

• Śukra
• Naimiṣa
• Śaṅkara (Śiva)
• Dānava (listener class)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sustained meditation on Śiva, supported by intense tapas at a sanctified tīrtha, yields extraordinary spiritual outcomes.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Naimiṣāraṇya (Naimiṣa), praised as a powerful locus for austerity and Śiva-meditation.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Tapas (austerity) and dhyāna (meditation) on Śaṅkara over a long vowed period are indicated.