Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 45

Devanagari script

कानिचिद्योजनार्द्धानि तदर्धार्धानि कानिचित् । निवर्त्तनप्रमाणेन दण्डमानेन कानिचित्

Transliteration

kānicidyojanārddhāni tadardhārdhāni kānicit | nivarttanapramāṇena daṇḍamānena kānicit

Translation

Certains (lieux sacrés) mesurent une demi-yojana; d’autres, la moitié de cette moitié. Certains se comptent selon la mesure d’un nivartana, et d’autres selon la mesure d’un daṇḍa.

Word by Word

• कानि: some
• कानि: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; अनिश्चित-प्रयोग

• चित्: (enclitic)
• चित्: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: cit (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात

• योजन-अर्द्धानि: half-yojana (in extent)
• योजन-अर्द्धानि: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: yojana (प्रातिपदिक) + ardha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (योजनस्य अर्द्धम्); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषणम् (implicit: उपक्षेत्राणि)

• तत्: of that
• तत्: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), एकवचन; 'of that' (refers to yojana/measure)

• अर्ध-अर्धानि: half of that half (a quarter)
• अर्ध-अर्धानि: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ardha (प्रातिपदिक) + ardha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (अर्धस्य अर्धम् = quarter); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषणम्

• कानि: some
• कानि: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• चित्: (enclitic)
• चित्: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: cit (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात

• निवर्त्तन-प्रमाणेन: by the measure called nivarttana
• निवर्त्तन-प्रमाणेन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nivarttana (प्रातिपदिक) + pramāṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (निवर्त्तनस्य प्रमाणम्); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन; करण/हेतु-भाव (instrumental: 'by/according to')

• दण्ड-मानेन: by rod-measure
• दण्ड-मानेन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: daṇḍa (प्रातिपदिक) + māna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (दण्डस्य मानम्); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन; करण

• कानि: some
• कानि: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• चित्: (enclitic)
• चित्: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: cit (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात

Speaker

Śiva (deduced from Prabhāsakṣetramāhātmya dialogue address to Devī in nearby verses)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra (measured sub-tracts)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A pilgrim-scribe or sage gestures over a map-like sacred field, marking zones: half-yojana tracts, smaller halves, and plots measured by nivartana and daṇḍa; the landscape is partitioned into luminous segments.

Characters & Entities

• Prabhāsa-kṣetra

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sacred places are described with precise traditional measures, emphasizing that tīrtha-dharma is grounded in an ordered, knowable sacred geography.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa-kṣetra, whose holy sub-sites are being described by their varying extents.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No specific rite is prescribed here; the verse focuses on the traditional measurement of sacred areas.