Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 3

Devanagari script

पातालं सुतलं नाम तस्यैव नितलं ह्यधः । गभस्तिगं च तस्याधो ह्यन्धतामिस्रमेव च

Transliteration

pātālaṃ sutalaṃ nāma tasyaiva nitalaṃ hyadhaḥ | gabhastigaṃ ca tasyādho hyandhatāmisrameva ca

Translation

Pātāla est appelé Sutala ; au-dessous de lui se trouve, en vérité, Nitala. Plus bas encore est Gabhastiga, et plus profond toujours, Andha-tāmisra.

Word by Word

• पातालम्: Pātāla (netherworld)
• पातालम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पाताल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (कर्म), एकवचन

• सुतलम्: Sutala (a nether region)
• सुतलम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सुतल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; पातालस्य विशेषणवत् (appositional)

• नाम: called/namely
• नाम: Sambandha (Apposition/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नामन्/नाम (अव्यय-प्रयोग)
• Form: अव्यय; नाम-शब्दः ‘called/namely’ इत्यर्थे (particle)

• तस्य: of that (one)
• तस्य: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (सम्बन्ध), एकवचन

• एव: indeed/just
• एव: None
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारणार्थक-निपात (emphatic particle)

• नितलम्: Nitala (a lower region)
• नितलम्: Adhikarana (Locative sense via adhaḥ/under)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नितल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; ‘सुतलस्य अधः’ इति स्तरनाम

• हि: indeed/for
• हि: None
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: हि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; हेत्वर्थ/निश्चयार्थक-निपात (indeed/for)

• अधः: below
• अधः: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अधस् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अव्ययीभावार्थे क्रियाविशेषण/देशवाचक (below)

• गभस्तिगम्: Gabhastiga (a nether region)
• गभस्तिगम्: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गभस्ति + ग (प्रातिपदिक); गभस्ति (किरण/रश्मि) + ग (गमनार्थक-प्रत्ययान्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; ‘गभस्तीन् गच्छति’ इति व्युत्पत्त्या स्तरनाम

• च: and
• च: None
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयार्थक-निपात (conjunction)

• तस्य: of that
• तस्य: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• अधः: below
• अधः: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अधस् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक (below)

• हि: indeed
• हि: None
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: हि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निश्चयार्थक-निपात

• अन्धतामिस्रम्: Andhatāmisra (blinding darkness; a nether/hell region)
• अन्धतामिस्रम्: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अन्ध + तामिस्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; ‘अन्धं तामिस्रम्’ इति विशेषण-विशेष्यभावः (a kind of darkness/hell)

• एव: just/indeed
• एव: None
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारणार्थक

• च: and
• च: None
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयार्थक

Speaker

Mārkaṇḍeya

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: a royal interlocutor (addressed as rājendra in the surrounding passage)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A descending cosmic cross-section: successive luminous and shadowed strata labeled Sutala, Nitala, Gabhastiga, and the pitch-dark Andha-tāmisra; serpents, jeweled caverns, and dim fires suggest depth and dread.

Characters & Entities

• Pātāla
• Sutala
• Nitala
• Gabhastiga
• Andha-tāmisra

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

It frames the Purāṇic cosmos as multi-layered, preparing the narrative for divine presence even in the deepest realms.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific tīrtha is named in this verse; it provides cosmological background within the Kapileśvara narrative context.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; this is descriptive cosmography.