Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 124

Devanagari script

सप्तार्चिषं जपेद्यस्तु नित्यमेव समाहितः । स तु सप्तसमुद्रायाः पृथिव्या एकराड्भवेत्

Transliteration

saptārciṣaṃ japedyastu nityameva samāhitaḥ | sa tu saptasamudrāyāḥ pṛthivyā ekarāḍbhavet

Translation

Celui qui, l’esprit recueilli, récite chaque jour l’hymne/mantra «Aux Sept Flammes» (Saptārciṣa) devient l’unique souverain de la terre ceinte par les sept mers.

Word by Word

• सप्तार्चिषम्: (the) seven-flamed (hymn/mantra)
• सप्तार्चिषम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सप्त (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक) + अर्चिष् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष/द्विगु-भावः: ‘सप्त अर्चिषः यस्य/यत्’ (नामरूपेण)

• जपेत्: should recite
• जपेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: जप् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), तृतीयपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• यः: who
• यः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; सम्बन्धक (relative pronoun)

• तु: indeed
• तु: Sambandha/Discourse particle (सम्बन्ध/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात, अव्यय

• नित्यम्: always
• नित्यम्: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नित्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषणरूपेण अव्ययीभूत (adverbial accusative), ‘always’

• एव: only/indeed
• एव: Sambandha/Emphasis (निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (emphatic particle)

• समाहितः: composed, concentrated
• समाहितः: Visheshana (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सम्-आ-धा (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त, पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; ‘collected, concentrated’

• सः: he
• सः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• तु: then/indeed
• तु: Sambandha/Discourse particle (सम्बन्ध/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात, अव्यय

• सप्तसमुद्रायाः: of (the earth) having seven oceans
• सप्तसमुद्रायाः: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सप्त (संख्या) + समुद्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष/द्विगु-भावः: ‘सप्त समुद्राः यस्याः’ (पृथिव्याः विशेषणम्)

• पृथिव्याः: of the earth
• पृथिव्याः: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पृथिवी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन

• एकराट्: sole ruler
• एकराट्: Karta (Subject complement/कर्ता-विशेष्य)
• Type: Noun
• Root: एक (संख्या) + राज्/राट् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्मधारयः: ‘एकः राट् (सम्राट्)’

• भवेत्: would become
• भवेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), तृतीयपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

Speaker

Śiva (Īśvara)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Sarasvatī–abdhisaṅgama at Prabhāsa

Type: sangam

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: A addressed ‘bhāminī’ (fair lady) appears in the surrounding discourse

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A focused sādhaka seated near the sea-shore at Prabhāsa, facing a subtle river-mouth (Sarasvatī’s hidden flow), counting japa on a mālā; behind, the vast ocean and a distant temple silhouette; seven tongues of flame or a seven-rayed aura symbolizing ‘saptārciṣ’.

Characters & Entities

• Saptārciṣ
• Sapta-samudra
• Pṛthivī

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Steady daily practice yields exalted ‘phala’; Purāṇic language expresses inner mastery as outer sovereignty.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa-kṣetra, where such recitation is taught within the Śrāddha-vidhi context.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Daily japa of the ‘Saptārciṣ’ with focused mind (samāhita).