Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 52

Devanagari script

मौनेन दृश्यते सूर्यो यावत्तावन्नराधिप

Transliteration

maunena dṛśyate sūryo yāvattāvannarādhipa

Translation

ഹേ നരാധിപാ! സൂര്യൻ ദൃശ്യമാകുന്നത്ര സമയം മൗനം പാലിക്കണം.

Word by Word

• मौनेन: by silence
• मौनेन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मौन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental), एकवचन

• दृश्यते: is seen, appears
• दृश्यते: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दृश् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद; कर्मणि-प्रयोग (passive)

• सूर्यः: the sun
• सूर्यः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सूर्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• यावत्: as long as
• यावत्: Sambandha (Adverbial/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यावत् (अव्यय)
• Form: परिमाण/अवधि-वाचक अव्यय (correlative: as long as)

• तावत्: so long
• तावत्: Sambandha (Adverbial/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तावत् (अव्यय)
• Form: परिमाण/अवधि-वाचक अव्यय (correlative: so long)

• नराधिप: O king (lord of men)
• नराधिप: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नर (प्रातिपदिक) + अधिप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन-विभक्ति (Vocative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (नराणाम् अधिपः)

Speaker

Bhartṛyajña (instructor) to Ānarta (king) — inferred from the surrounding Śrāddha discourse

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Narādhipa (king) addressed in the verse

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A śrāddha performer seated facing the Sun, lips closed in mauna, hands in a composed posture near a water-pot and kuśa; the Sun disk above the horizon, quiet tīrtha landscape.

Characters & Entities

• Sūrya

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Silence safeguards purity and concentration during sacred acts, aligning the rite with solar time and ritual decorum.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The guidance is situated in the Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra Māhātmya section of Nāgara Khaṇḍa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Observe mauna (silence) for as long as the Sun remains visible during the rite.