Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 32

Devanagari script

सूर्यदक्षिणनैरृत्ये पातालविवरं प्रिये । मंदेहा राक्षसा यत्र तथा शालकटंकटाः

Transliteration

sūryadakṣiṇanairṛtye pātālavivaraṃ priye | maṃdehā rākṣasā yatra tathā śālakaṭaṃkaṭāḥ

Translation

പ്രിയേ! സൂര്യസ്ഥാനത്തിന്റെ തെക്ക്–തെക്ക് പടിഞ്ഞാറ് ദിശയിൽ പാതാളത്തിലേക്കുള്ള ഒരു വിള്ളൽ ഉണ്ട്. അവിടെ മന്ദേഹ രാക്ഷസരും ശാലകടങ്കടരും വസിക്കുന്നു.

Word by Word

• sūrya-dakṣiṇa-nairṛtye: in the south-western direction to the south of the Sun (i.e., sun’s southern south-west)
• sūrya-dakṣiṇa-nairṛtye: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sūrya (प्रातिपदिक) + dakṣiṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + nairṛtya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (सूर्यस्य दक्षिणे नैरृत्ये दिग्भागे)

• pātāla-vivaram: a chasm/opening to Pātāla
• pātāla-vivaram: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pātāla (प्रातिपदिक) + vivara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (पातालस्य विवरम्)

• priye: O dear one
• priye: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: priyā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th), एकवचन

• maṃdehāḥ: Mandeha (demons)
• maṃdehāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: maṃdeha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन

• rākṣasāḥ: rākṣasas
• rākṣasāḥ: Apposition (Same-subject/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rākṣasa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन

• yatra: where
• yatra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yatra (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय/सम्बन्धबोधक (relative adverb: where)

• tathā: also
• tathā: Sambandha (Coordination/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय/तुल्यार्थक-अव्यय (also/likewise)

• śāla-kaṭaṃkaṭāḥ: Śālas and Kaṭaṃkaṭas (classes of beings)
• śāla-kaṭaṃkaṭāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śāla (प्रातिपदिक) + kaṭaṃkaṭa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; द्वन्द्व (शालाः च कटंकटाः च)

Speaker

Śiva (addressing Devī/Pārvatī)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Pātāla-vivara (door/cleft) near Sūrya-sthāna in Prabhāsa

Type: cave

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Devī

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A sun-shrine in the distance; to its south-southwest a dark fissure in the earth like a cave-mouth, with shadowy rākṣasa figures (Maṃdeha and Śālakaṭaṃkaṭa) lurking near the opening; the site feels guarded and forbidden.

Characters & Entities

• Sūrya
• Pātāla
• Maṃdeha Rākṣasas
• Śālakaṭaṃkaṭas

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Tīrthas are mapped not only by shrines but by mythic landscapes that teach vigilance, purity, and reverence for sacred boundaries.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

A pātāla-vivara (netherworld opening) within the Prabhāsa-kṣetra circuit, located relative to the Sūrya shrine.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No direct rite is stated; the verse provides sacred topography and the beings associated with the place.