Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 20

Devanagari script

तं देवदेवं विश्वेशं सूर्यकोटिसमप्रभम् । महाप्रलयसंक्षुब्धसप्तार्णवघनस्वनम्

Transliteration

taṃ devadevaṃ viśveśaṃ sūryakoṭisamaprabham | mahāpralayasaṃkṣubdhasaptārṇavaghanasvanam

Translation

അവൻ ദേവദേവനായ വിശ്വേശ്വരനെ ദർശിച്ചു—കോടി സൂര്യന്മാരുടെ സമപ്രഭയോടെ ദീപ്തനായവനെ, മഹാപ്രളയത്തിൽ ക്ഷുബ്ധമായ സപ്തസമുദ്രങ്ങളുടെ ഗംഭീരഗർജ്ജനപോലെ നാദിക്കുന്നവനെ.

Word by Word

• तम्: him
• तम्: Karman (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• देवदेवम्: god of gods
• देवदेवम्: Karman (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देव-देव (प्रातिपदिक; देव + देव)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• विश्वेशम्: lord of the universe
• विश्वेशम्: Karman (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विश्व-ईश (प्रातिपदिक; विश्व + ईश)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• सूर्यकोटिसमप्रभम्: having splendor equal to ten million suns
• सूर्यकोटिसमप्रभम्: Karman (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सूर्य-कोटि-सम-प्रभ (प्रातिपदिक; सूर्य + कोटि + सम + प्रभ)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; विशेषण

• महाप्रलयसंक्षुब्धसप्तार्णवघनस्वनम्: whose sound is like the deep roar of seven oceans churned in the great dissolution
• महाप्रलयसंक्षुब्धसप्तार्णवघनस्वनम्: Karman (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महा-प्रलय-संक्षुब्ध-सप्त-अर्णव-घन-स्वन (प्रातिपदिक; महा + प्रलय + संक्षुब्ध + सप्त + अर्णव + घन + स्वन)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; बहुपद-समास; विशेषण

Speaker

Narrator (contextual Purāṇic narrator; likely Sūta/Lomaharṣaṇa in Brāhma Khaṇḍa framing)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Sanatkumāra beholds Śiva as Devadeva: a blinding aura like countless suns; the air vibrates with a roar like oceans in pralaya; waves and storm-clouds form a sonic halo behind the deity.

Characters & Entities

• Devadeva (Śiva)
• Viśveśa (Śiva)
• Mahāpralaya
• Sapta-arṇava (seven oceans)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The Lord’s majesty surpasses cosmic forces—radiance and power that remain sovereign even at dissolution.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific site is mentioned; the verse is a universal theophany of Viśveśa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None—this is descriptive praise (stuti) through cosmic comparison.