Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 41

Devanagari script

ततः स बालकः सद्यः स्नातमात्रो द्विजोत्तमाः । कुष्ठव्याधिविनिर्मुक्तो जातो बालार्कसंनिभः

Transliteration

tataḥ sa bālakaḥ sadyaḥ snātamātro dvijottamāḥ | kuṣṭhavyādhivinirmukto jāto bālārkasaṃnibhaḥ

Translation

ثمّ، يا خِيارَ ذوي الولادتين، إنّ ذلك الغلام ما إن فرغ من الاغتسال حتى تحرّر من داء الجُذام، وصار متلألئًا كالشمس عند طلوع الصباح.

Word by Word

• ततः: then/thereupon
• ततः: Adhikarana (Context/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (क्रियाविशेषण/सम्बन्धबोधक), अर्थे: 'तस्मात्/अनन्तरम्' (thereupon/then)

• सः: he
• सः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; सर्वनाम (he)

• बालकः: the boy
• बालकः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bālaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• सद्यः: immediately
• सद्यः: Kriya-vishesana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sadyaḥ (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (कालवाचक क्रियाविशेषण) (immediately)

• स्नातमात्रः: having just bathed
• स्नातमात्रः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: snāta (कृदन्त, √snā (धातु) ) + mātra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (स्नातः एव मात्रः = just bathed); कृदन्तः—क्त (past passive participle)

• द्विजोत्तमाः: O best of the twice-born (Brahmins)
• द्विजोत्तमाः: Sambodhana/Address (Vocative sense/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvija (प्रातिपदिक) + uttama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; कर्मधारय-समास (श्रेष्ठाः द्विजाः = best of the twice-born)

• कुष्ठव्याधिविनिर्मुक्तः: freed from leprosy-disease
• कुष्ठव्याधिविनिर्मुक्तः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kuṣṭha (प्रातिपदिक) + vyādhi (प्रातिपदिक) + vinirmukta (कृदन्त, √muc (धातु) )
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (कुष्ठ-व्याधिभ्यः विनिर्मुक्तः); कृदन्तः—क्त (past passive participle)

• जातः: became/was born (i.e., became)
• जातः: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: jāta (कृदन्त, √jan (धातु))
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; कृदन्तः—क्त (born/has become), वाक्ये क्रियार्थे प्रयुक्तः (used predicatively)

• बालार्कसंनिभः: resembling the rising sun
• बालार्कसंनिभः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bāla (प्रातिपदिक) + arka (प्रातिपदिक) + saṃnibha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (बालार्कस्य संनिभः = like the morning sun)

Speaker

Narrative voice addressing dvijottamas (brāhmaṇas/sages) within the discourse

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Gomukha-prakāśita tīrtha (name not explicit in verse)

Type: kund

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: dvijottamāḥ (addressed brāhmaṇas)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A leprosy-afflicted boy steps out of a sacred pool/spring; his skin becomes clear and he shines like the newborn morning sun; astonished attendants and a reverent father look on.

Characters & Entities

• Dvijottama (addressed audience)
• Leprosy (kuṣṭha)
• Jāhnavī waters (by context)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Tīrtha-snānā, when performed in faith at a sanctified place, yields tangible transformation—purity, health, and renewed spiritual brilliance.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The supuṇya Jāhnavī waters associated with Hāṭakeśvara-kṣetra, shown to confer immediate healing.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Bathing/immersion in the sacred water as the direct means for removing affliction and impurity.