Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 55

Devanagari script

अश्वमेधफलं स्नाने पाने गोदानजं फलम् । पुष्कराद्यानि तीर्थानि गंगाद्याः सरितस्तथा

Transliteration

aśvamedhaphalaṃ snāne pāne godānajaṃ phalam | puṣkarādyāni tīrthāni gaṃgādyāḥ saritastathā

Translation

Hier bringt das Bad den Lohn des Aśvamedha-Opfers; das Trinken des Wassers gewährt die Frucht der Kuhspende. Es ist den Tīrthas gleich, die mit Puṣkara beginnen, und den Flüssen, deren erster die Gaṅgā ist.

Word by Word

• अश्वमेधफलम्: the fruit of the Aśvamedha sacrifice
• अश्वमेधफलम्: Karma/Phala (Result/फल)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अश्वमेध (प्रातिपदिक) + फल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन — Neuter, Nom./Acc., Singular; तत्पुरुष (अश्वमेधस्य फलम्)

• स्नाने: in bathing
• स्नाने: Adhikarana (Context/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्नान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन — Neuter, Locative, Singular

• पाने: in drinking
• पाने: Adhikarana (Context/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन — Neuter, Locative, Singular

• गोदानजम्: arising from cow-gift
• गोदानजम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: गोदान (प्रातिपदिक) + ज (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन — Neuter, Nom./Acc., Singular; तत्पुरुष (गोदानात् जातम्)

• फलम्: fruit/result
• फलम्: Karma/Phala (Result/फल)
• Type: Noun
• Root: फल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन — Neuter, Nom./Acc., Singular

• पुष्कराद्यानि: beginning with Puṣkara, etc.
• पुष्कराद्यानि: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पुष्कर (प्रातिपदिक) + आदि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, बहुवचन — Neuter, Nom./Acc., Plural; तत्पुरुष (पुष्कर-आदीनि)

• तीर्थानि: pilgrimage places
• तीर्थानि: Karta/Karma (Listed items/कर्ता/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, बहुवचन — Neuter, Nom./Acc., Plural

• गंगाद्याः: beginning with the Gaṅgā, etc.
• गंगाद्याः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: गङ्गा (प्रातिपदिक) + आदि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन — Feminine, Nominative, Plural; तत्पुरुष (गङ्गा-आद्याः)

• सरितः: rivers
• सरितः: Karta/Karma (Listed items/कर्ता/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सरित् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन — Feminine, Nominative, Plural

• तथा: and likewise/also
• तथा: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रकार/समुच्चय-अव्यय (thus/also)

Speaker

Purāṇic narrator

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Mokṣa-tīrtha (Mukteśa)

Type: kund

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Pilgrims bathe in luminous tīrtha waters; above them, symbolic imagery of Aśvamedha (horse, yajña paraphernalia) and go-dāna (cow with garland) appears as a visionary overlay; distant hints of Puṣkara lotus and Gaṅgā flow signify equivalence.

Characters & Entities

• Aśvamedha
• Snāna
• Pāna
• Go-dāna
• Puṣkara
• Gaṅgā
• Tīrtha

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

A truly sanctified tīrtha can concentrate immense merit, making simple acts like bathing and drinking spiritually transformative.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Dharmāraṇya-associated Mokṣatīrtha region is praised as comparable to Puṣkara and as eminent among sacred waters like the Gaṅgā.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Snāna (bathing) and pāna (drinking tīrtha water) are prescribed as merit-yielding acts; go-dāna is referenced as a benchmark of merit.