Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 40

Devanagari script

उरस्तु पृथिवीलोकः पादश्चैव रसातलम् । अयं ब्रह्मांडरूपे च मूर्त्तामूर्त्तस्वरूपतः

Transliteration

urastu pṛthivīlokaḥ pādaścaiva rasātalam | ayaṃ brahmāṃḍarūpe ca mūrttāmūrttasvarūpataḥ

Translation

Sa poitrine est le monde terrestre, Pṛthivī-loka, et ses pieds sont le royaume de Rasātala. Ainsi se tient-il comme la forme même du Brahmāṇḍa, à la fois manifesté et non manifesté.

Word by Word

• उरः: chest
• उरः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: उरस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• तु: but/indeed
• तु: Nipata (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: विरोध/विभेदक-निपात (particle: but/indeed)

• पृथिवी-लोकः: the earthly world
• पृथिवी-लोकः: Samanadhikarana (Apposition/समानाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पृथिवी (प्रातिपदिक) + लोक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः: पृथिव्याः लोकः)

• पादः: foot
• पादः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पाद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• च: and
• च: Samuccaya (Coordination/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• एव: indeed
• एव: Nipata (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारण-अव्यय (emphasis)

• रसातलम्: Rasātala (netherworld)
• रसातलम्: Samanadhikarana (Apposition/समानाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रसातल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• अयम्: this (one)
• अयम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• ब्रह्माण्ड-रूपे: in the form of the universe-egg (cosmic form)
• ब्रह्माण्ड-रूपे: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्माण्ड (प्रातिपदिक) + रूप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative), एकवचन; (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः: ब्रह्माण्डस्य रूपम्)

• च: and
• च: Samuccaya (Coordination/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• मूर्त-अमूर्त-स्वरूपतः: as (being) of embodied-and-formless nature
• मूर्त-अमूर्त-स्वरूपतः: Hetu/Prakara (Manner/हेतु-प्रकार)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: मूर्त (प्रातिपदिक) + अमूर्त (प्रातिपदिक) + स्वरूप (प्रातिपदिक) + तस् (तद्धित-अव्यय प्रत्यय)
• Form: तद्धितान्त-अव्यय (ablatival adverb) ‘-तः’ = ‘from/as regards’; समासः (द्वन्द्व-आभासः मूर्त+अमूर्त, तत्पुरुषेण स्वरूप)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced from Nāgarakhaṇḍa Tīrthamāhātmya narrative style)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A cosmic figure stands with chest labeled as Pṛthivī-loka and feet descending into Rasātala; the surrounding universe appears as an egg-shaped aura (brahmāṇḍa).

Characters & Entities

• Brahmāṇḍa
• Pṛthivīloka
• Rasātala

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

It presents the deity as the living cosmos, encouraging reverence for all realms as parts of the divine body.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No single tīrtha is named in this verse; it provides cosmological grounding within a broader tīrtha-glorification chapter.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None explicitly; it supports meditative contemplation on the Lord’s cosmic form.