Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 2

Devanagari script

सप्तद्वीपसमुद्रान्तां सशैलवनकाननाम् । निर्दग्धां तु महीं कृत्स्नां कालो भूत्वा महेश्वरः

Transliteration

saptadvīpasamudrāntāṃ saśailavanakānanām | nirdagdhāṃ tu mahīṃ kṛtsnāṃ kālo bhūtvā maheśvaraḥ

Translation

ഏഴ് ദ്വീപങ്ങളും സമുദ്രങ്ങളും ചുറ്റിയ, പർവ്വത-വനം-ഉപവനം ഉൾപ്പെട്ട സമസ്ത ഭൂമിയെയും മഹേശ്വരൻ കാലരൂപനായി ദഹിപ്പിച്ച് ഭസ്മമാക്കി.

Word by Word

• सप्तद्वीपसमुद्रान्ताम्: bounded by oceans around the seven continents
• सप्तद्वीपसमुद्रान्ताम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सप्त + द्वीप + समुद्र + अन्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; सप्त-द्वीप-समुद्र-अन्त (बहुपद-तत्पुरुषः: “having the ocean as boundary of the seven continents”) विशेषणम्

• सशैलवनकाननाम्: with mountains, forests, and groves
• सशैलवनकाननाम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स + शैल + वन + कानन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; सह-समास (स-): “with mountains, forests, and groves” विशेषणम्

• निर्दग्धाम्: burnt
• निर्दग्धाम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: निर्+दह् (धातु)
• Form: क्त (past passive participle); स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (burnt up)

• तु: indeed
• तु: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधान/विरोधसूचक निपात (particle: “but/indeed”)

• महीम्: the earth
• महीम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मही (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• कृत्स्नाम्: entire
• कृत्स्नाम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कृत्स्न (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (entire)

• कालः: Time (as personified)
• कालः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: काल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• भूत्वा: having become
• भूत्वा: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त अव्यय (gerund): “having become”

• महेश्वरः: Mahēśvara (the Great Lord)
• महेश्वरः: Karta (Apposition/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महेश्वर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; महा+ईश्वर (कर्मधारय/तत्पुरुषः: “Great Lord”)

Speaker

Undetermined (narrative voice within Revā Khaṇḍa; likely a Purāṇic narrator addressing a listener)

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: King (nṛpasattama)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Maheśvara, embodying Time, incinerates the entire sapta-dvīpa world—oceans, mountains, forests—until the earth becomes ash.

Characters & Entities

• Maheśvara
• Kāla
• Pṛthivī (Earth)
• Saptadvīpa

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

All worlds are impermanent; Śiva as Kāla dissolves creation, urging detachment and refuge in Dharma and the Divine.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The verse sits within the Revā Khaṇḍa’s sacred geography (Narmadā/Revā region), framing cosmic themes that enhance the river’s mahātmya, though no single tirtha is named in this line.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None in this verse; it is a cosmological description of dissolution (pralaya).