Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 14

Devanagari script

तथा महीसमुद्रस्य स्नानं सर्वफलप्रदम् । येनात्र पितरः स्कन्द तर्पिता भक्तिभावतः

Transliteration

tathā mahīsamudrasya snānaṃ sarvaphalapradam | yenātra pitaraḥ skanda tarpitā bhaktibhāvataḥ

Translation

وكذلك فإن الاغتسال في بحر ماهي (موضع التلاقي) يمنح كل ثمرة. وبهذا، يا سكَندا، تُرضى الأرواحُ السلفية (الپِتْرِ) هنا بروحٍ من التعبّد والإخلاص.

Word by Word

• tathā: likewise
• tathā: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय/प्रकारवाचक-अव्यय (likewise)

• mahī-samudrasya: of the earth-ocean (confluence/sea)
• mahī-samudrasya: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahī (प्रातिपदिक) + samudra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (सम्बन्ध), एकवचन; समासः: मह्याः समुद्रः (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष)

• snānam: bathing
• snānam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: snāna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (कर्ता), एकवचन

• sarva-phala-pradam: granting all fruits (results)
• sarva-phala-pradam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक) + phala (प्रातिपदिक) + prada (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः: सर्वाणि फलानि प्रददाति इति (उपपद-तत्पुरुष)

• yena: by which
• yena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: यद्-सर्वनाम, तृतीया-विभक्ति (करण), एकवचन

• atra: here
• atra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atra (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय (here)

• pitaraḥ: the ancestors (fathers)
• pitaraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pitṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (कर्ता), बहुवचन

• skanda: O Skanda
• skanda: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: skanda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन-विभक्ति (आह्वान), एकवचन

• tarpitāḥ: satisfied, gratified
• tarpitāḥ: Kriya (Result state/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √tṛp (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; pitaraḥ इत्यस्य विशेषणम्

• bhakti-bhāvataḥ: out of devotion
• bhakti-bhāvataḥ: Hetu (Cause/हेतु)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: bhakti (प्रातिपदिक) + bhāva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययीभाव-समास; तसिल्-प्रत्ययान्त अव्यय (ablatival adverb): भक्तिभावात् (from devotion/with devotional feeling)

Speaker

Devas (addressing Skanda within the narrative frame)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Mahī–Samudra Snāna / Mahī–Sāgara Saṅgama

Type: sangam

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Skanda (addressed: ‘skanda’)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: At dawn, pilgrims bathe where river meets sea; one devotee offers tarpaṇa with cupped hands, sesame floating on water. Subtle ancestral silhouettes receive the offering; Skanda is addressed in the narration, suggesting a sacred witness.

Characters & Entities

• Mahī (river)
• Samudra/Sāgara (ocean)
• Skanda
• Pitṛs

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Devotional bathing at a sanctified confluence supports both personal merit and ancestral well-being.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Mahī–Samudra (Mahī–ocean) confluence tīrtha.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Snāna (ritual bathing) performed with bhakti, linked to the satisfaction of the Pitṛs (ancestral rite context).