Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 15

Devanagari script

उत्तरं चायनं तत्र दिनं रात्रिस्तथाऽपरम् । लक्षैः सप्तदशाख्यैस्तु मनुष्याणां च वत्सरैः

Transliteration

uttaraṃ cāyanaṃ tatra dinaṃ rātristathā'param | lakṣaiḥ saptadaśākhyaistu manuṣyāṇāṃ ca vatsaraiḥ

Translation

ที่นั่น อุตตรายณะ (uttarāyaṇa) เป็นกลางวัน และอีกฝ่ายคือ ทักษิณายณะ (dakṣiṇāyaṇa) เป็นกลางคืน (วัน-คืนทิพย์นั้น) วัดได้ด้วยปีมนุษย์สิบเจ็ดลักษะ

Word by Word

• uttaram: northern
• uttaram: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: uttara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; ayanam इत्यस्य विशेषणम्

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्ययम्

• ayanam: ayana (half-year)
• ayanam: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ayana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन

• tatra: there/in that (context)
• tatra: Adhikaraṇa (Location/context)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: देश/प्रसङ्ग-अव्ययम् (locative adverb)

• dinam: day
• dinam: Karma (Predicate complement)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dina (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन (विधेय-रूपेण)

• rātriḥ: night
• rātriḥ: Karta (Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rātri (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/कर्ता), एकवचन

• tathā: thus/likewise
• tathā: Sambandha (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम्; प्रकारार्थक (thus/so)

• aparam: the other (southern)
• aparam: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: apara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; (rātriḥ इत्यस्य विरोध-युग्मे ‘other’)

• lakṣaiḥ: by lakhs
• lakṣaiḥ: Karana (Measure)
• Type: Noun
• Root: lakṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), बहुवचन

• saptadaśa-ākhyaiḥ: named ‘seventeen’
• saptadaśa-ākhyaiḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: saptadaśa (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक) + ākhyā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (सप्तदश इति आख्या यस्य/यैः); तृतीया, बहुवचन; lakṣaiḥ इत्यस्य विशेषणम्

• tu: indeed
• tu: Sambandha (Discourse particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम्; अवधारण/विरोधार्थक

• manuṣyāṇām: of humans
• manuṣyāṇām: Sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Noun
• Root: manuṣya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), बहुवचन

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्ययम्

• vatsaraiḥ: by years
• vatsaraiḥ: Karana (Measure)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vatsara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), बहुवचन

Speaker

Sūta

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Two halves of a cosmic mandala: uttarāyaṇa as bright ‘day’ with rising sun and blooming lotuses; dakṣiṇāyaṇa as ‘night’ with moon, stars, and subdued tones; a sage annotates ‘17 lakṣa human years’ as the measure.

Characters & Entities

• Uttarāyaṇa
• Dakṣiṇāyaṇa (implied)
• manuṣya-vatsara

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Cosmic cycles (ayana) are sacred markers; contemplating vast divine time expands spiritual perspective beyond human limitation.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No specific tīrtha is named; the verse is cosmological, embedded within a tīrtha-mahātmya chapter.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit ritual is prescribed; ayana distinctions are commonly used for timing festivals, vows, and pilgrimages.