Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 35

Devanagari script

मूत्रोत्सर्गपुरीषेण दूषयेत्पुण्यभूमिकाः । गहनेन तथा राजन्स्त्रियो दूषयते हि सः

Transliteration

mūtrotsargapurīṣeṇa dūṣayetpuṇyabhūmikāḥ | gahanena tathā rājanstriyo dūṣayate hi saḥ

Translation

بالتبوّل والتغوّط في غير موضعهما تُدنَّس الأرض المقدّسة؛ وكذلك، أيها الملك، بالمعاشرة خفيةً (على وجهٍ محرَّم) يُلحق الرجلُ الدنسَ بالنساء وبشرفهنّ حقًّا.

Word by Word

• मूत्रोत्सर्गपुरीषेण: by urine-discharge and feces
• मूत्रोत्सर्गपुरीषेण: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मूत्र (प्रातिपदिक) + उत्सर्ग (प्रातिपदिक) + पुरीष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (करण/Instrumental), एकवचन; समासः—द्वन्द्व (मूत्रोत्सर्ग + पुरीष)

• दूषयेत्: should defile
• दूषयेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दूष् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• पुण्यभूमिकाः: holy grounds/places
• पुण्यभूमिकाः: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुण्य (प्रातिपदिक) + भूमिका (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (कर्म/Object), बहुवचन; समासः—कर्मधारय (पुण्या भूमिका)

• गहनेन: by (entering) a thicket/remote place
• गहनेन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गहन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (करण/Instrumental), एकवचन

• तथा: likewise
• तथा: Avyaya (Modifier/अव्यय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकारवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (adverb: 'thus/likewise')

• राजन्: O king
• राजन्: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: राजन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative/सम्बोधन), एकवचन

• स्त्रियः: women
• स्त्रियः: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्त्री (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (कर्म/Object), बहुवचन

• दूषयते: defiles
• दूषयते: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दूष् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• हि: indeed
• हि: Avyaya (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: हि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात (particle: emphasis/indeed)

• सः: he
• सः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (कर्ता/Subject), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

Speaker

Unspecified narrator (Purāṇic narration) addressing a King (rājan/nareśvara)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Dharmāraṇya (contextual sacred forest)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: राजन् (King)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A sacred forest-kṣetra with a marked tīrtha precinct; a dharma-teacher admonishes a king about purity—showing boundaries, latrine-away zones, and women protected within a dignified household space.

Characters & Entities

• King (rājan)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Purity of place and purity of conduct are both dharmic duties; disrespecting sacred ground or engaging in secretive wrongdoing brings spiritual and social harm.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Dharmāraṇya sacred region is implied as ‘puṇya-bhūmi’—a holy landscape that must be kept ritually pure.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

A moral-ritual rule of śauca: do not contaminate sacred land with bodily waste; uphold ethical restraint to avoid defilement.