Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 14

Devanagari script

अन्यानि कोटिशः संति तानि लुप्तानि भामिनि । कृतस्मरात्समारभ्य यावदर्कस्थलो रविः

Transliteration

anyāni koṭiśaḥ saṃti tāni luptāni bhāmini | kṛtasmarātsamārabhya yāvadarkasthalo raviḥ

Translation

ஓ ஒளிமிகு பெண்ணே, இதுபோன்ற கோடிக்கணக்கான (விவரங்கள்) உள்ளன; ஆனால் அவை மறைந்துவிட்டன. க்ருதஸ்மர காலத்திலிருந்து, ரவி அர்கஸ்தலமாக நிலைத்திருக்கும் வரை இது நிலைத்திருக்கும்.

Word by Word

• अन्यानि: other (ones)
• अन्यानि: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अन्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; विशेषण (others)

• कोटिशः: by crores, countless
• कोटिशः: Visheshana (Adverbial qualifier/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: कोटि-शस् (प्रातिपदिक + तद्धित/अव्ययीभाव-प्रयोग)
• Form: अव्यय, परिमाणवाचक-क्रियाविशेषण ("in crores", "by crores")

• सन्ति: exist, are
• सन्ति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √अस् (असँ धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन

• तानि: those
• तानि: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; सर्वनाम

• लुप्तानि: vanished, lost
• लुप्तानि: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: लुप्त (प्रातिपदिक; कृदन्त from √लुप्)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (PPP) from √लुप् (लुप् धातु)

• भामिनि: O radiant lady
• भामिनि: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भामिनी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th), एकवचन

• कृतस्मरात्: from (the place/person called) Kṛtasmar(a)
• कृतस्मरात्: Apadana (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कृत-स्मर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th), एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (कृतः स्मरः यस्य/कृतस्मर-नाम)

• समारभ्य: starting from
• समारभ्य: Sambandha (Boundary marker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सम्-आ-√रभ् (रभ् धातु)
• Form: अव्यय, तुमुन्/ल्यप्-प्रयोगः; here: ल्यप् (absolutive/gerund) "having begun/starting from"

• यावत्: up to, until
• यावत्: Sambandha (Limit/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यावत् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, परिमाण/अवधिवाचक ("up to", "as long as")

• अर्कस्थलः: Arkasthala
• अर्कस्थलः: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अर्क-स्थल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (अर्कस्य स्थलम्)

• रविः: the Sun
• रविः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रवि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

Speaker

Purāṇic narrator (addressing Bhāminī/Devī)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Arkasthala (Prabhāsa) with Pātāla-vivara

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Devī/ Bhāminī (addressed as ‘O radiant one’)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A panorama of many netherworld openings fading into obscurity, while one great portal near Arkasthala remains marked by the steady radiance of the Sun-deity; a time-lapse sense from ancient Kṛtasmara to the present.

Characters & Entities

• Arkasthala
• Ravi (Sūrya)
• Kṛtasmara

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sacred geography has enduring nodes: while many wonders fade, a divinely anchored kṣetra remains as a stable refuge for seekers.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Arkasthala in Prabhāsakṣetra, presented as a lasting sacred locus tied to Ravi (Sūrya).

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No ritual is specified; the verse emphasizes the antiquity and persistence of Arkasthala’s sanctity.