Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 184

Devanagari script

बिंबेनांतरितो देवि आदित्यग्रहणं हि तत् । न कश्चिद्ग्रसितुं शक्त आदित्यो दहति ध्रुवम्

Transliteration

biṃbenāṃtarito devi ādityagrahaṇaṃ hi tat | na kaścidgrasituṃ śakta ādityo dahati dhruvam

Translation

ข้าแต่พระเทวี เมื่อดวงสุริยะถูกบังด้วยดวงกลมที่คั่นกลาง นั่นแลเรียกว่า “สุริยคราส” แต่ไม่มีผู้ใดมีกำลังจะกลืนพระสุริยะได้จริง เพราะพระอาทิตยะย่อมแผดเผาโดยแน่นอน

Word by Word

• biṃbena: by the disk/orb (of the moon)
• biṃbena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: biṃba (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (करण), एकवचन — Neuter, Instrumental (3rd), Singular

• antaritaḥ: covered/obscured
• antaritaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: antarita (कृदन्त; √antar/antarā- ‘to intervene/cover’ (धातु))
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; भूतकृदन्त (क्त) — Masculine, Nominative, Singular; past participle (kta)

• devi: O goddess
• devi: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: devī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, एकवचन — Feminine, Vocative, Singular

• āditya-grahaṇam: the eclipse of the Sun
• āditya-grahaṇam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: āditya (प्रातिपदिक) + grahaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन — Neuter, Nominative/Accusative, Singular; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (ādityasya grahaṇam)

• hi: indeed/for
• hi: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (emphatic/causal particle) — particle

• tat: that (phenomenon)
• tat: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन — Neuter, Nominative/Accusative, Singular (pronoun)

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (Negation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-अव्यय — negation particle

• kaścit: anyone
• kaścit: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kaścid (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — Masculine, Nominative, Singular (indefinite pronoun)

• grasitum: to swallow
• grasitum: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √gras (ग्रस्)
• Form: तुमुन्-प्रत्ययान्त अव्यय (infinitive) — infinitive (to do)

• śaktaḥ: able/capable
• śaktaḥ: Karta (Predicate adjective/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śakta (कृदन्त; √śak (शक्) ‘to be able’ (धातु))
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; भूतकृदन्त (क्त) — Masculine, Nominative, Singular; past participle used adjectivally

• ādityaḥ: the Sun
• ādityaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: āditya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• dahati: burns
• dahati: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √dah (दह्)
• Form: लट्-लकार, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन — Present indicative, 3rd person, Singular

• dhruvam: certainly
• dhruvam: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: dhruva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषणरूपेण द्वितीया-एकवचन (नपुंसक) — adverbial accusative (certainly)

Speaker

Īśvara (Śiva)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Devī

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A blazing Sun radiates fiercely while a dark disk partially covers it; the narration emphasizes that the Sun’s burning power remains intact, dispelling the notion of being ‘swallowed’.

Characters & Entities

• Āditya (Sūrya)
• Devī

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Evil or obscuration can veil truth temporarily, but cannot destroy the inner radiance of dharma (symbolized by the Sun).

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Prabhāsa-kṣetra, where Sūrya’s greatness is taught as part of the site’s māhātmya.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

None directly; the verse clarifies the nature of grahaṇa as ‘obscuration’ rather than literal swallowing.