Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 46

Devanagari script

जनस्तपस्तथा सत्यमिति चाकृतकं त्रयम् । कृतकाकृतयोर्मध्ये मर्हर्लोक इति स्मृतः

Transliteration

janastapastathā satyamiti cākṛtakaṃ trayam | kṛtakākṛtayormadhye marharloka iti smṛtaḥ

Translation

‘ജന, തപ, സത്യ’—ഈ ത്രയവും ‘അകൃതക’ (നിർമ്മിതമല്ലാത്ത) ലോകമെന്നു പറയുന്നു. കൃതകവും അകൃതകവും തമ്മിൽ ‘മഹർലോകം’ എന്നു സ്മരിക്കപ്പെടുന്നു.

Word by Word

• janaḥ: Jana (world)
• janaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; (लोकनाम)

• tapaḥ: Tapaḥ (world)
• tapaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tapas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; (लोकनाम)

• tathā: also
• tathā: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb: ‘also’)

• satyam: Satya (world)
• satyam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: satya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; (लोकनाम)

• iti: thus
• iti: Sambandha (Quotation marker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (अव्यय)
• Form: उद्धरण/इति-निपात

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय (and)

• akṛtakam: uncreated
• akṛtakam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a-kṛtaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; त्रयम् इति विशेषण

• trayam: a triad (threefold set)
• trayam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: traya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; समूहवाचक (a triad)

• kṛtaka-akṛtayoḥ: of (the) created and uncreated
• kṛtaka-akṛtayoḥ: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṛtaka + akṛta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (समाहार-द्वन्द्व), षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), द्विवचन; ‘of the created and uncreated (sets)’

• madhye: in the middle
• madhye: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: madhya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; ‘in the middle’

• mahar-lokaḥ: Mahar-loka
• mahar-lokaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahar + loka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• iti: thus
• iti: Sambandha (Quotation marker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (अव्यय)
• Form: उद्धरण/इति-निपात

• smṛtaḥ: is said/remembered (as)
• smṛtaḥ: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √smṛ (धातु) + kta
• Form: कृत (past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; ‘is called/remembered’

Speaker

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

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A cosmic ladder: below, the tri-loka; above, three serene realms labeled Jana, Tapa, Satya; in the middle, Maharloka as a twilight band where great ṛṣis dwell, suggesting an in-between luminosity.

Characters & Entities

• Janaloka
• Tapoloka
• Satyaloka
• Maharloka

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

It frames reality in tiers—made and unmade—inviting reflection on transcendence beyond the manifest cosmos.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

None; the verse is metaphysical/cosmological rather than a pilgrimage praise.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it classifies realms (lokas) conceptually.