Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 13

Devanagari script

राशिं कर्कटकं प्राप्य कुरुते दक्षिणायांनम् । कुलालचक्रपर्यंतो यथा शीघ्रं निवर्तते

Transliteration

rāśiṃ karkaṭakaṃ prāpya kurute dakṣiṇāyāṃnam | kulālacakraparyaṃto yathā śīghraṃ nivartate

Translation

Parvenu au signe de Karkaṭaka (Cancer), il commence la marche vers le sud (dakṣiṇāyana). Tel le rebord de la roue du potier, il se retourne alors avec une grande rapidité.

Word by Word

• rāśim: the zodiac sign
• rāśim: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rāśi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन

• karkaṭakam: Cancer (Karkaṭaka sign)
• karkaṭakam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: karkaṭaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; राशिनाम

• prāpya: having reached
• prāpya: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra + āp (आप् धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (Absolutive/Gerund), अव्ययभाव (indeclinable verbal), ‘having reached’

• kurute: does/makes
• kurute: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: kṛ (कृ धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• dakṣiṇa-ayanam: the southern course (dakṣiṇāyana)
• dakṣiṇa-ayanam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dakṣiṇa + ayana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; कर्मधारयः ‘दक्षिणम् अयनम्’

• kulāla-cakra-paryantaḥ: like the rim/limit of a potter’s wheel
• kulāla-cakra-paryantaḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kulāla + cakra + paryanta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; ‘कुलालचक्रस्य पर्यन्तः’ इति षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष; विशेषण (अन्तर्निहितः ‘गति/परिवर्तन’ इत्यर्थे)

• yathā: just as
• yathā: Sambandha (Comparative connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; उपमानार्थ (as/just as)

• śīghram: quickly
• śīghram: Adverbial (Kriyāviśeṣaṇa/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śīghra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; क्रियाविशेषणवत् (adverbial accusative)

• nivartate: turns back/returns
• nivartate: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ni + vṛt (वृत् धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

Speaker

Lomaharṣaṇa Sūta (deduced; Māheśvarakhaṇḍa narration to sages)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Dakṣiṇāyana-praveśa kāla (time-tīrtha)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Sūrya reaching Karkaṭaka sector and beginning descent; a potter’s wheel shown in parallel, its rim turning swiftly, visually echoing the solar reversal; seasonal shift hinted by clouds/monsoon edge.

Characters & Entities

• Karkaṭaka (Cancer)
• Dakṣiṇāyana
• Kulālacakra (potter’s wheel)
• Sūrya

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The cosmos moves with purposeful turns; the Sun’s ‘return’ teaches that change is intrinsic to time and should be met with steadiness.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No tīrtha is mentioned; the verse is an astronomical marker for the southern course.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly; dakṣiṇāyana often frames seasonal rites in wider dharma literature.