Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 16

Devanagari script

लक्षयोजनविस्तारं जंबूद्वीपं प्रकीर्त्यते । सूर्यबिंबसमाकारं तावत्क्षारार्णवावृतम्

Transliteration

lakṣayojanavistāraṃ jaṃbūdvīpaṃ prakīrtyate | sūryabiṃbasamākāraṃ tāvatkṣārārṇavāvṛtam

Translation

जम्बूद्वीप का विस्तार एक लाख योजन कहा गया है। वह सूर्य-मण्डल के समान आकार वाला है और उतने ही परिमाण में क्षार-समुद्र से घिरा हुआ है।

Word by Word

• lakṣa-yojana-vistāram: having an extent of one lakh yojanas
• lakṣa-yojana-vistāram: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: lakṣa (प्रातिपदिक) + yojana (प्रातिपदिक) + vistāra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (कर्म), एकवचन; समासः—षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (lakṣa-yojanānāṃ vistāraḥ)

• jaṃbū-dvīpam: Jambūdvīpa
• jaṃbū-dvīpam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jaṃbū (प्रातिपदिक) + dvīpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारय/षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष-प्रायः (jaṃbūnāma dvīpaḥ)

• prakīrtyate: is proclaimed/said
• prakīrtyate: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra + √kīrt (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (वर्तमान), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद; कर्मणि-प्रयोग (passive)

• sūrya-biṃba-samākāram: having the shape of the sun’s disk
• sūrya-biṃba-samākāram: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sūrya (प्रातिपदिक) + biṃba (प्रातिपदिक) + samākāra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (sūryasya biṃbasya samākāraḥ)

• tāvat: of that extent/so much
• tāvat: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tāvat (प्रातिपदिक/अव्यय-प्राय)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; परिमाणवाचक (quantitative)

• kṣāra-arṇava-āvṛtam: surrounded by the salt ocean
• kṣāra-arṇava-āvṛtam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kṣāra (प्रातिपदिक) + arṇava (प्रातिपदिक) + ā-√vṛ (धातु) → āvṛta (कृदन्त, क्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past passive participle); समासः—तत्पुरुषः (kṣārārṇavena āvṛtam)

Speaker

Lomaharṣaṇa (Sūta) (deduced)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Jambūdvīpa (cosmic kṣetra) / Kṣārārṇava (salt ocean)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A circular sun-disc-like continent (Jambūdvīpa) shown as a radiant mandala, ringed by a broad band of salt ocean; subtle directional markers and concentric symmetry.

Characters & Entities

• Jambūdvīpa
• Kṣārārṇava (salt ocean)
• Sūrya (sun)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Creation is depicted as measured and harmonious; contemplating cosmic order supports reverence for the divine intelligence governing all realms.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No single pilgrimage site is specified; Jambūdvīpa is the cosmographic stage on which many tīrthas are later situated.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; the verse provides a descriptive cosmological measure and boundary.