Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 22

Devanagari script

महेश्वर उवाच । कालशक्त्या च जातानि रजःसत्त्वतमांसि च । तैरावृतं जगत्सर्वं सदेवासुमानुषम्

Transliteration

maheśvara uvāca | kālaśaktyā ca jātāni rajaḥsattvatamāṃsi ca | tairāvṛtaṃ jagatsarvaṃ sadevāsumānuṣam

Translation

Maheśvara dit : Par la puissance du Temps naissent rajas, sattva et tamas. Par eux, l’univers tout entier est voilé, avec les dieux, les asuras et les humains.

Word by Word

• maheśvaraḥ: Maheśvara
• maheśvaraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: maheśvara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• kāla-śaktyā: by the power of Time
• kāla-śaktyā: Karaṇa (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāla (प्रातिपदिक) + śakti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (कालस्य शक्तिः)

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

• jātāni: arose/were born
• jātāni: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: jan (धातु) → jāta (कृदन्त/क्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त; ‘born/arisen’

• rajaḥ-sattva-tamāṃsi: rajas, sattva, and tamas (the guṇas)
• rajaḥ-sattva-tamāṃsi: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rajas (प्रातिपदिक) + sattva (प्रातिपदिक) + tamas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचन; समासः—इतरेतर-द्वन्द्व (रजः च सत्त्वं च तमः च)

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

• taiḥ: by them
• taiḥ: Karaṇa (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), बहुवचन; सर्वनाम (‘by them’)

• āvṛtam: covered/enveloped
• āvṛtam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ā-vṛ (धातु) → āvṛta (कृदन्त/क्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त; जगत्-शब्देन सह विशेषणम्

• jagat: the world
• jagat: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jagat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन

• sarvam: entire
• sarvam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; जगत्-विशेषणम्

• sa-deva-asu-mānuṣam: together with gods, asuras, and humans
• sa-deva-asu-mānuṣam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sa (प्रातिपदिक) + deva (प्रातिपदिक) + asu (प्रातिपदिक) + mānuṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष/बहुपद-समाहारः (‘देवैः असुभिः/असुरैः च मानुषैः च सहितम्’)

Speaker

Śiva (Maheśvara)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kedāra / Kedāranātha

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Gaṇeśa (as addressed in the surrounding narrative)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Śiva speaks as a cosmic teacher: behind him, a symbolic wheel of Time (kāla-cakra) emanates three colored streams—white (sattva), red (rajas), dark (tamas)—spreading like a veil over devas, asuras, and humans.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva (Maheśvara)
• Kāla (Time)
• Sattva
• Rajas
• Tamas
• Devas
• Asuras
• Humans

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Time-power generates the guṇas, and the guṇas veil reality; liberation requires seeing beyond their covering.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The teaching occurs within Kedārakhaṇḍa’s sacred Kedāra context, reinforcing Kedāra as a place where Śiva’s liberating doctrine is revealed.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None in this verse; it is doctrinal instruction.