Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 40

Devanagari script

भूमिसूर्यांतरं तच्च भुवर्लोकः प्रकीर्तितः । ध्रुवसूर्यांतरं तच्च नियुतानि चतुर्दश

Transliteration

bhūmisūryāṃtaraṃ tacca bhuvarlokaḥ prakīrtitaḥ | dhruvasūryāṃtaraṃ tacca niyutāni caturdaśa

Translation

ഭൂമിയും സൂര്യനും തമ്മിലുള്ള അന്തരം ‘ഭുവർലോകം’ എന്നു പ്രഖ്യാതം. ധ്രുവനും സൂര്യനും തമ്മിലുള്ള അന്തരം പതിനാലു നിയുതങ്ങളെന്നു പറയപ്പെടുന്നു.

Word by Word

• bhūmi-sūrya-antaraṃ: the distance between earth and the sun
• bhūmi-sūrya-antaraṃ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhūmi (प्रातिपदिक) + sūrya (प्रातिपदिक) + antara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; ‘भूमेः सूर्यस्य च अन्तरम्’ (distance between earth and sun)

• tat: that
• tat: Anuvṛtti / Deictic (Reference/अनुवृत्ति)
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; संकेतक

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Conjunction/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• bhuvar-lokaḥ: Bhuvarloka
• bhuvar-lokaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhuvar (प्रातिपदिक) + loka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; ‘भुवः लोकः’

• prakīrtitaḥ: is declared
• prakīrtitaḥ: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa / Predicative (Predicate adjective/विधेय)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pra-√kīrt (कीर्त्, धातु) → prakīrtita (कृदन्त, क्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त

• dhruva-sūrya-antaraṃ: the distance between Dhruva and the sun
• dhruva-sūrya-antaraṃ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dhruva (प्रातिपदिक) + sūrya (प्रातिपदिक) + antara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; ‘ध्रुवस्य सूर्यस्य च अन्तरम्’ (distance between Dhruva and the sun)

• tat: that
• tat: Anuvṛtti / Deictic (Reference/अनुवृत्ति)
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Conjunction/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• niyutāni: niyutas (units of large number)
• niyutāni: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: niyuta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), बहुवचन; संख्यावाचक-परिमाण (a large number; ‘niyuta’ = ten-thousand/lakh depending on tradition)

• caturdaśa: fourteen
• caturdaśa: Viśeṣaṇa (Numeral qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: caturdaśa (संख्याप्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययवत् संख्याशब्दः; ‘चतुर्दश’ = 14; ‘niyutāni’ इति विशेष्यस्य संख्या

Speaker

Lomaharṣaṇa (Sūta) to the sages (deduced from Māheśvara-khaṇḍa framing)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Bhuvarloka (antarikṣa)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A vertical cosmic axis: Earth below, Sun above, Dhruva as the fixed star; annotated distances in niyutas; sages pointing to the axis.

Characters & Entities

• Bhūmi (Earth)
• Sūrya (Sun)
• Bhuvarloka
• Dhruva
• Niyuta

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

By mapping the cosmos in sacred terms, it frames creation as a meaningful hierarchy rather than a random expanse.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No pilgrimage site is mentioned; the verse defines Bhuvarloka through cosmic distances.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; the content is numerical/cosmographic.