Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 5

Devanagari script

शतवर्षसहस्राणां तपश्चक्रे सुदुश्चरम् । दशवर्षसहस्राणि दित्या गर्भे स्थितः पुरा

Transliteration

śatavarṣasahasrāṇāṃ tapaścakre suduścaram | daśavarṣasahasrāṇi dityā garbhe sthitaḥ purā

Translation

അവൻ ഒരു ലക്ഷം വർഷങ്ങൾ അത്യന്തം ദുഷ്കരമായ തപസ്സു ചെയ്തു. മുൻപ് ദിതിയുടെ ഗർഭത്തിൽ പത്തായിരം വർഷങ്ങൾ അവൻ നിലകൊണ്ടിരുന്നു।

Word by Word

• śatavarṣasahasrāṇām: of thousands of hundred-years (i.e., for many thousands of years)
• śatavarṣasahasrāṇām: Sambandha (Genitive/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śata + varṣa + sahasra (प्रातिपदिके)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), बहुवचन; संख्या-सम्बन्धे समास (शतवर्षाणां सहस्राणि इति)

• tapaḥ: austerity, penance
• tapaḥ: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tapas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• cakre: performed/did
• cakre: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kṛ (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; आत्मनेपद

• suduścaram: very difficult (to perform)
• suduścaram: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: su + duścara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; विशेषण (तपः इत्यस्य)

• daśavarṣasahasrāṇi: ten-thousands of years
• daśavarṣasahasrāṇi: Kāla-adhikaraṇa (Duration/काल)
• Type: Noun
• Root: daśa + varṣa + sahasra (प्रातिपदिके)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया/प्रथमा (2nd/1st), बहुवचन; संख्या-सम्बन्धे समास

• dityāḥ: of Diti
• dityāḥ: Sambandha (Genitive/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: diti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), एकवचन

• garbhe: in the womb
• garbhe: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: garbha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन

• sthitaḥ: having remained/being situated
• sthitaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √sthā (धातु) + kta (कृदन्त-प्रत्यय)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle)

• purā: formerly, once
• purā: Kāla (Time/काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: purā (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक अव्यय (adverb of time)

Speaker

Īśvara (Śiva)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Two-part visualization: (1) Hiraṇyakaśipu in fierce austerity for 100,000 years—emaciated, surrounded by heat and stillness; (2) a symbolic womb-scene of Diti with the embryo enduring 10,000 years, emphasizing extraordinary gestation and destiny.

Characters & Entities

• Hiraṇyakaśipu (implied)
• Diti
• Tapas

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Tapas grants potency, but its value depends on alignment with dharma; power without righteousness becomes destructive.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Not specified in this verse; it belongs to the Prabhāsakṣetra māhātmya’s narrative sequence.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No prescription—only the account of prolonged austerity and gestation.