Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 20

Devanagari script

लोकसाक्षी त्रिलोकेशः कर्त्ता हर्त्ता तमिस्रहा । तपनस्तापनश्चैव शुचिः सप्ताश्ववाहनः

Transliteration

lokasākṣī trilokeśaḥ karttā harttā tamisrahā | tapanastāpanaścaiva śuciḥ saptāśvavāhanaḥ

Translation

Il est le témoin du monde, le seigneur des trois mondes, le faiseur et le repreneur, le dissipateur des ténèbres ; Tapanā et Tāpana, le Pur, dont le char est attelé de sept chevaux.

Word by Word

• लोकसाक्षी: witness of the world
• लोकसाक्षी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: loka (प्रातिपदिक) + sākṣin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (world+witness)

• त्रिलोकेशः: lord of the three worlds
• त्रिलोकेशः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tri (प्रातिपदिक) + loka (प्रातिपदिक) + īśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (of three worlds + lord)

• कर्ता: doer / creator
• कर्ता: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कृ (धातु) + तृ (कृत्-प्रत्यय)
• Form: कृदन्त (agent noun), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• हर्ता: remover / destroyer
• हर्ता: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हृ (धातु) + तृ (कृत्-प्रत्यय)
• Form: कृदन्त (agent noun), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• तमिस्रहा: remover of darkness
• तमिस्रहा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tamisra (प्रातिपदिक) + हा (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त (हा-धातु से), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); तत्पुरुष (darkness+remover)

• तपनः: Tapanā (the heating one)
• तपनः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tapana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• तापनः: Tāpana (the burner)
• तापनः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tāpana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• च: and
• च: Avyaya (Conjunction)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• एव: indeed
• एव: Avyaya (Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारणार्थक-अव्यय (emphatic particle)

• शुचिः: Śuci (the pure one)
• शुचिः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śuci (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• सप्ताश्ववाहनः: one whose vehicle is seven horses
• सप्ताश्ववाहनः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sapta (प्रातिपदिक) + aśva (प्रातिपदिक) + vāhana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (of seven horses + vehicle/bearer)

Speaker

Īśvara (Śiva)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Mahādevī

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Sūrya’s golden chariot drawn by seven horses surges across the sky; darkness recedes below; three worlds depicted in tiers; Sūrya as witness with an all-seeing gaze.

Characters & Entities

• Sūrya
• Triloka
• Sapta-aśva (seven horses)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Divine light is both cosmic and moral—Sūrya dispels outer darkness and supports inner clarity and righteous living.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsakṣetra, where Sūrya’s cosmic sovereignty is praised within the site’s Māhātmya.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Recitative praise (stava) through these epithets, emphasizing Sūrya’s witnesshood, purity, and seven-horsed form.