Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 159

Devanagari script

शनिदेशे मध्यरात्रौ महीसागरसंगमे । जातीजं रावणो लिंगं जपन्नाम सुदुर्जयम्

Transliteration

śanideśe madhyarātrau mahīsāgarasaṃgame | jātījaṃ rāvaṇo liṃgaṃ japannāma sudurjayam

Translation

Dans le domaine de Śani, à minuit, au point où la terre rejoint l’océan, Rāvaṇa adore un liṅga de bois de jāti, en psalmodiant le Nom « Sudurjaya », l’Invincible.

Word by Word

• śanideśe: in Śani’s region/place
• śanideśe: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śani + deśa (प्रातिपदिक; समास)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/7th), एकवचन (Singular)

• madhyarātrau: at midnight
• madhyarātrau: Adhikaraṇa (Time/कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: madhya + rātri (प्रातिपदिक; समास)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/7th), एकवचन (Singular)

• mahīsāgarasaṃgame: at the confluence of earth and ocean
• mahīsāgarasaṃgame: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahī + sāgara + saṃgama (प्रातिपदिक; समास)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/7th), एकवचन (Singular)

• jātījam: born of jasmine (jātī)
• jātījam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: jātī + ja (प्रातिपदिक; समास)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (Singular); ‘-ja’ = ‘born of/produced from’

• rāvaṇaḥ: Rāvaṇa
• rāvaṇaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rāvaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• liṅgam: liṅga
• liṅgam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: liṅga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (Singular)

• japan: chanting
• japan: Karta (Agent/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √jap (जप् धातु) + शतृ (present active participle)
• Form: वर्तमानकृदन्त (शतृ), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nom./1st), एकवचन (Singular); कर्तरि प्रयोगः

• nāma: the name
• nāma: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nāman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (Singular); ‘name’ as object of chanting (jap-)

• sudurjayam: very hard to conquer
• sudurjayam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: su + durjaya (प्रातिपदिक; समास)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (Singular)

Speaker

Lomaharṣaṇa (Sūta), per Māheśvarakhaṇḍa default attribution

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Mahī-sāgara-saṅgama in Śani-deśa (Sudurjaya-liṅga)

Type: sangam

Visual Art Cues

Scene: At midnight on a moonlit shore where waves meet the earth, Rāvaṇa performs intense japa before a small liṅga carved from fragrant jāti-wood; Śani’s austere region is suggested by dark skies and a stern, fated atmosphere.

Characters & Entities

• Śani
• Rāvaṇa
• Śiva
• Sudurjaya
• Ocean (Sāgara)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Śiva is ‘Sudurjaya’, beyond conquest by any power; intense discipline of time and place (midnight, liminal shore) is framed as potent devotion.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

A seashore confluence (mahī–sāgara-saṃgama) is praised as a liminal sacred setting, but the text here does not name a particular coastal tīrtha.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Japa of the name ‘Sudurjaya’ while worshipping a jāti-made liṅga, specifically performed at midnight at the land–ocean meeting.