Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 46

Devanagari script

न सूर्यो भाति तत्रैव महांधकार संयुतम् । निर्जनं निर्मनुष्यं च बहुयोजनमायतम्

Transliteration

na sūryo bhāti tatraiva mahāṃdhakāra saṃyutam | nirjanaṃ nirmanuṣyaṃ ca bahuyojanamāyatam

Translation

Là, le soleil ne brillait nullement; tout y était mêlé d’une grande obscurité—solitaire, sans présence humaine, et s’étendant sur bien des yojanas.

Word by Word

• न: not
• न: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्ययम् (negative particle)

• सूर्यः: the sun
• सूर्यः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सूर्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (m.), प्रथमा (Nominative/कर्ता), एकवचन (sg.)

• भाति: shines
• भाति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भा (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (sg.); परस्मैपदम्

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्ययम् (locative adverb)

• एव: indeed, just
• एव: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारणार्थक-अव्ययम् (emphatic particle)

• महांधकारसंयुतम्: joined with great darkness; filled with deep darkness
• महांधकारसंयुतम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महान् + अन्धकार + संयुत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (n.), द्वितीया (Accusative), एकवचन (sg.); विशेषणम् वनम्-विशेषणम्

• निर्जनम्: deserted, without people
• निर्जनम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: निर् + जन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (n.), द्वितीया (Accusative), एकवचन (sg.); विशेषणम्

• निर्मनुष्यम्: without humans
• निर्मनुष्यम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: निर् + मनुष्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (n.), द्वितीया (Accusative), एकवचन (sg.); विशेषणम्

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्ययम् (conjunction)

• बहुयोजनमायतम्: extending for many yojanas
• बहुयोजनमायतम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: बहु + योजन + आयत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (n.), द्वितीया (Accusative), एकवचन (sg.); विशेषणम्

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) narrating (deduced)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Dharmāraṇya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A vast, peopleless forest corridor under heavy canopy; the sun is obscured; deep bluish-green darkness; the traveler appears small against the immense stretch measured in yojanas.

Characters & Entities

• Dharmāraṇya

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Holy landscapes can appear fearsome or inaccessible outwardly, yet their very otherworldliness signals a realm suited for tapas and inner transformation.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Dharmāraṇya, portrayed as an immense and uncanny sacred forest.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly; the verse establishes the kṣetra’s extraordinary atmosphere.