Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 39

Devanagari script

प्रत्यक्छीतो दकंनाम उत्तरे च महाह्रदः । विष्कंभगिरयो ह्येत उच्छ्रिताः पंचविंशतिः

Transliteration

pratyakchīto dakaṃnāma uttare ca mahāhradaḥ | viṣkaṃbhagirayo hyeta ucchritāḥ paṃcaviṃśatiḥ

Translation

À l’ouest se trouve le lac nommé Śīta ; et aussi celui appelé Daka ; et au nord, le grand lac Mahāhrada. Tels sont les monts Viṣkambha, s’élevant à vingt-cinq yojanas.

Word by Word

• pratyak: in the west
• pratyak: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: pratyak (अव्यय)
• Form: दिक्/देशवाचक-अव्यय (directional adverb ‘westward/in the west’)

• śītaḥ: Śīta (name)
• śītaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śīta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन (masculine, nominative singular; proper name ‘Śīta’)

• dakam: Daka (name)
• dakam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: daka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन (neuter, nominative/accusative singular; name)

• nāma: named
• nāma: Sambandha (Apposition/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: nāman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नाम-शब्दः अव्ययवत् (particle ‘named’)

• uttare: in the north
• uttare: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: uttara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन (locative singular used adverbially: ‘in the north’)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• mahā-hradaḥ: the great lake
• mahā-hradaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + hrada (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कर्मधारय-समासः (‘great’ + ‘lake’); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन (masculine, nominative singular)

• viṣkaṃbha-girayaḥ: Viṣkaṃbha mountains
• viṣkaṃbha-girayaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viṣkaṃbha (प्रातिपदिक) + giri (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समासः; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन (masculine, nominative plural)

• hi: indeed
• hi: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: निश्चय/हेतुबोधक-अव्यय (particle ‘indeed/for’)

• ete: these
• ete: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन (pronoun, masculine, nominative plural)

• ucchritāḥ: are lofty/raised
• ucchritāḥ: Kriyā (Predicate participle/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ud-śri (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त-भूतकृदन्त (past passive participle) ‘ucchrita’; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन (masculine, nominative plural)

• paṃca-viṃśatiḥ: twenty-five
• paṃca-viṃśatiḥ: Pramāṇa (Measure/परिमाण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: paṃca (प्रातिपदिक) + viṃśati (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: संख्यासमासः (additive: 5+20=25), द्वन्द्ववत्; स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन (feminine, nominative singular; number ‘twenty-five’)

Speaker

Lomaharṣaṇa (Sūta), narrating to the sages (deduced from Māheśvarakhaṇḍa context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Mahāhrada (as archetypal great lake)

Type: kund

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A western lake named Śīta rendered icy-cool; a northern Mahāhrada as a vast dark-blue reservoir; behind them, towering Viṣkambha mountains like pillars, annotated with ‘25 yojanas’ in a manuscript-map aesthetic.

Characters & Entities

• Śīta
• Daka
• Mahāhrada
• Viṣkambha

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

It emphasizes cosmic order—directions, waters, and mountains—supporting a dharmic worldview where creation is structured and meaningful.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No single earthly tīrtha; it names cosmic lakes and the Viṣkambha mountain range.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; the verse focuses on description and measurement.