Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 147

Devanagari script

तद्वत्सर्वमिदं लोके दुःखं दुःखेन शाम्यति । एवमेतज्जगत्सर्वमन्योन्यातिशयोच्छ्रितम्

Transliteration

tadvatsarvamidaṃ loke duḥkhaṃ duḥkhena śāmyati | evametajjagatsarvamanyonyātiśayocchritam

Translation

അതുപോലെ ഈ ലോകത്തിൽ എല്ലാം ദുഃഖമേ; ദുഃഖം ദുഃഖം കൊണ്ടുതന്നെ ശമിക്കുന്നു. ഇങ്ങനെ ഈ സമസ്ത ജഗത്ത് പരസ്പര അതിശയത്തിൽ—ഒരാൾ മറ്റൊരാളെ മികവുകാട്ടുന്ന മത്സരത്തിൽ—ആശ്രയിച്ച് നിലകൊള്ളുന്നു.

Word by Word

• तद्वत्: likewise; in that manner
• तद्वत्: Kriya-vishesana (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + वत् (तद्धित-प्रत्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; उपमानार्थक (in the same way)

• सर्वम्: everything
• सर्वम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (कर्ता), एकवचन

• इदम्: this
• इदम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: इदम् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (कर्ता), एकवचन; ‘this’ (सर्वम् इदम् = ‘all this’)

• लोके: in the world
• लोके: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: लोक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (अधिकरण), एकवचन

• दुःखम्: suffering; pain
• दुःखम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दुःख (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (कर्ता) / द्वितीया (कर्म), एकवचन; अत्र कर्तृभावे (as subject-predicate)

• दुःखेन: by/through suffering
• दुःखेन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दुःख (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (करण), एकवचन

• शाम्यति: subsides; is pacified
• शाम्यति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: शम् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (present), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• एवम्: thus
• एवम्: Kriya-vishesana (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एवम् (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकारवाचक (manner)

• एतत्: this
• एतत्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (कर्ता), एकवचन

• जगत्: world; universe
• जगत्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जगत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (कर्ता), एकवचन

• सर्वम्: entire
• सर्वम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifying जगत्)

• अन्योन्य-अतिशय-उच्छ्रितम्: raised by mutual superiority (one over another)
• अन्योन्य-अतिशय-उच्छ्रितम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अन्योन्य (प्रातिपदिक) + अतिशय (प्रातिपदिक) + उच्छ्रित (कृदन्त; √श्रि/श्रय् with उद्-; past participle sense ‘raised’)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (mutual-excess-elevated)

Speaker

Lomaharṣaṇa (Sūta) to the sages (deduced from Māheśvarakhaṇḍa context)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A crowded marketplace of kings, merchants, and ascetics all striving to outdo one another; a spiral staircase of ‘excess’ rises upward, yet each step is marked by suffering; a calm seer observes the pattern.

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Rivalry-driven life perpetuates distress; seeing this clearly supports detachment and the search for lasting peace.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No site is named; the verse presents a universal diagnosis of saṃsāra.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None is specified; the teaching is philosophical and ethical rather than ritual.