Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 3
माहेश्वरस्य विप्रेन्द्राः श्रूयतां गदतः स्फुटम् । निमेषस्य चतुर्भागस्त्रुटिः स्यात्तद्द्वयं लवः
māheśvarasya viprendrāḥ śrūyatāṃ gadataḥ sphuṭam | nimeṣasya caturbhāgastruṭiḥ syāttaddvayaṃ lavaḥ
ഹേ വിപ്രശ്രേഷ്ഠന്മാരേ, മഹേശ്വരന്റെ കാലമാനം ഞാൻ പറയുന്നതു വ്യക്തമായി ശ്രവിക്കുവിൻ. നിമേഷത്തിന്റെ നാലിലൊന്ന് ‘ത്രുടി’; രണ്ട് ത്രുടികൾ ചേർന്നാൽ ‘ലവ’ ആകുന്നു.
Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa)
Listener: viprendra (best of brāhmaṇas)
Scene: A seated sage addresses attentive brāhmaṇas, counting subtle time units with a rosary or finger-gestures; behind them a stylized cosmic wheel of time (kāla-cakra) and a faint liṅga emblem indicating Maheśvara’s order.
FAQs
Even the smallest moments are ordered within sacred cosmology; dharma recognizes time as structured and meaningful, not random.
This is a kāla-māna teaching verse rather than a site-eulogy line; it supports correct timing of tirtha-related rites.
A definitional prescription: truṭi and lava are defined relative to nimeṣa, forming the foundation for later ritual timekeeping.