Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 17

Devanagari script

महाकल्पे च संप्राप्ते चराचरे क्षयं गते । जलरूपी जगन्नाथो रममाणस्तु लीलया

Transliteration

mahākalpe ca saṃprāpte carācare kṣayaṃ gate | jalarūpī jagannātho ramamāṇastu līlayā

Translation

ମହାକଳ୍ପ ଆସିଲେ, ଚରାଚର ସମସ୍ତଙ୍କ କ୍ଷୟ ହେଲାପରେ, ଜଳରୂପୀ ଜଗନ୍ନାଥ ଲୀଳାରେ ରମଣ କରି ଅବସ୍ଥିତ ରହିଲେ।

Word by Word

• महाकल्पे: in the great aeon
• महाकल्पे: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महाकल्प (प्रातिपदिक: महा + कल्प)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी विभक्ति, एकवचन (locative singular); समास: महा(विशेषण) + कल्प

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय (conjunction)

• संप्राप्ते: when (it) had arrived
• संप्राप्ते: Adhikarana (Locative absolute/सप्तमी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सं + √प्राप् (धातु) + क्त
• Form: कृदन्त (क्त), पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी विभक्ति, एकवचन; locative absolute with महाकल्पे

• चराचरे: in the moving and unmoving (world)
• चराचरे: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: चराचर (प्रातिपदिक: चर + अचर)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी विभक्ति, एकवचन (locative singular); द्वन्द्व: चर (moving) + अचर (non-moving)

• क्षयम्: destruction
• क्षयम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: क्षय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया विभक्ति, एकवचन (accusative singular)

• गते: when (it) had gone to
• गते: Adhikarana (Locative absolute/सप्तमी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √गम् (धातु) + क्त
• Form: कृदन्त (क्त), पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी विभक्ति, एकवचन; locative absolute with चराचरे

• जलरूपी: having the form of water
• जलरूपी: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: जलरूपिन् (प्रातिपदिक: जल + रूपिन्)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति, एकवचन; समास: जलस्य रूपम् (having the form of water)

• जगन्नाथः: Lord of the universe
• जगन्नाथः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जगन्नाथ (प्रातिपदिक: जगत् + नाथ)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति, एकवचन; समास: जगतः नाथः

• रममाणः: sporting, delighting
• रममाणः: Karta (Agent/कर्ता)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √रम् (धातु) + शानच् (आत्मनेपद वर्तमान कृदन्त)
• Form: वर्तमान कृदन्त (शानच्), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा विभक्ति, एकवचन; present middle participle

• तु: but, indeed
• तु: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (contrast/emphasis particle)

• लीलया: by play, sportively
• लीलया: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: लीला (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया विभक्ति, एकवचन (instrumental singular)

Speaker

Śiva

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Pralaya-jala (symbolic)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A boundless ocean under a dark-blue sky; all worlds dissolved. In the center, the Lord as the very essence of water—suggested by a luminous presence—rests in playful serenity.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva
• Jagannātha (the Lord)
• Mahākalpa
• Pralaya (implied)
• Water (jala)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

The Supreme remains untouched by dissolution; what appears as cosmic ending is within divine līlā and order.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific site is named; the verse supplies cosmological context that often undergirds a place’s māhātmya.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None; it narrates the state of the Lord during cosmic dissolution.