Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 19

Devanagari script

महर्लोकः क्षितेरूर्ध्वमेककोटिप्रमाणतः । कोटिद्वये तु संख्यातो जनो भूर्लोकतो जनैः

Transliteration

maharlokaḥ kṣiterūrdhvamekakoṭipramāṇataḥ | koṭidvaye tu saṃkhyāto jano bhūrlokato janaiḥ

Translation

ഭൂമിയുടെ മുകളിൽ മഹർലോകം ഒരു കോടി (യോജന) അളവിലാണ്; ഭൂർലോകത്തിൽ നിന്ന് രണ്ട് കോടി മുകളിൽ ജനലോകം എന്നു അളവറിയുന്നവർ കണക്കാക്കുന്നു।

Word by Word

• mahar-lokaḥ: Maharloka
• mahar-lokaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahar (प्रातिपदिक) + loka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• kṣiteḥ: of the earth
• kṣiteḥ: Sambandha (Reference point/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṣiti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (सम्बन्ध), एकवचन

• ūrdhvam: above
• ūrdhvam: Adhikarana (Spatial/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ūrdhva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय—क्रियाविशेषणम् (above)

• eka-koṭi-pramāṇataḥ: by the measure of one koṭi
• eka-koṭi-pramāṇataḥ: Sambandha (Measure/प्रमाण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eka (प्रातिपदिक) + koṭi (प्रातिपदिक) + pramāṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + -tas (तसिल्)
• Form: अव्यय—तसिल्-प्रत्ययान्त (ablatival adverb) ‘प्रमाणतः’ = ‘in measure/extent’

• koṭi-dvaye: in (the measure of) two koṭis
• koṭi-dvaye: Adhikarana (Measure-locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: koṭi (प्रातिपदिक) + dvi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (अधिकरण), एकवचन; द्विगु-समास—‘two koṭis’

• tu: but/indeed
• tu: Sambandha (Discourse particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय—निपात (contrast/indeed)

• saṃkhyātaḥ: is reckoned
• saṃkhyātaḥ: Kriya (Predicative/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: saṃkhyāta (कृदन्त; √khyā धातु with sam-)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त—‘is counted/considered’

• janaḥ: Janaloka (the world called Jana)
• janaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• bhūḥ-lokataḥ: from Bhūrloka (as reference)
• bhūḥ-lokataḥ: Apadana (Reference source/अपादान)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: bhūḥ (प्रातिपदिक) + loka (प्रातिपदिक) + -tas (तसिल्)
• Form: अव्यय—तसिल्-प्रत्ययान्त (from/with reference to)

• janaiḥ: by people
• janaiḥ: Karana (Agent-instrument in passive/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (करण), बहुवचन

Speaker

Skanda

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Brāhmaṇa interlocutor / ṛṣi-assembly (frame)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Two luminous strata above the solar-heavenly region: Maharloka as a serene sage-filled expanse; above it Janaloka as an even subtler realm with radiant, austere beings; distances indicated by symbolic numerals/markers.

Characters & Entities

• Skanda
• Maharloka
• Janaloka
• Bhūrloka

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The Purāṇa frames the universe as multi-tiered, reinforcing that spiritual effort and dharma correspond to higher states of being.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific tīrtha; the verse is part of a cosmological enumeration.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None mentioned.