Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 60

Devanagari script

एकेकांगुलमानं तच्चर्वयेद्दंतधावनम् । प्रातः स्नानं चरित्वा च शुद्ध्यै तीर्थे विशेषतः

Transliteration

ekekāṃgulamānaṃ taccarvayeddaṃtadhāvanam | prātaḥ snānaṃ caritvā ca śuddhyai tīrthe viśeṣataḥ

Translation

Man kaue ein Zahnreinigungszweiglein in der Länge eines Fingergliedes. Dann, nach dem morgendlichen Bad—besonders an einem heiligen Tīrtha (Furt)—erlangt man Reinheit.

Word by Word

• eka-eka-aṅgula-mānam: of the measure of one finger-breadth (each)
• eka-eka-aṅgula-mānam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: eka (प्रातिपदिक) + eka (प्रातिपदिक) + aṅgula (प्रातिपदिक) + māna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (विशेषण-विशेष्यभावः), अर्थः ‘एकैक-अङ्गुल-परिमाणम्’

• tat: that
• tat: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• carvayet: should chew
• carvayet: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: carv (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; धातुः—चर्व् ‘चर्वणे/चर्वयति’

• danta-dhāvanam: tooth-cleaning stick/cleaning of teeth
• danta-dhāvanam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: danta (प्रातिपदिक) + dhāvana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः) ‘दन्तानां धावनम्’

• prātaḥ: in the morning
• prātaḥ: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: prātaḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक-क्रियाविशेषण (adverb of time)

• snānam: bath
• snānam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: snāna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन

• caritvā: having performed
• caritvā: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: car (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund) ‘चरित्वा’; धातुः—चर्; अर्थः ‘कृत्वा/समाप्य’

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयबोधक-निपात (conjunction)

• śuddhyai: for purification
• śuddhyai: Sampradana (Recipient/Purpose/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śuddhi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी (4), एकवचन; प्रयोजन/सम्प्रदानार्थ (dative of purpose)

• tīrthe: at a sacred ford/place of pilgrimage
• tīrthe: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tīrtha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7), एकवचन

• viśeṣataḥ: especially
• viśeṣataḥ: Sambandha (Modifier/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: viśeṣataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकारवाचक-क्रियाविशेषण (adverb: especially)

Speaker

Deductive (contextual narrator within Brahmakhaṇḍa; likely a Purāṇic narrator addressing kings/assembly)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: तीर्थ (सामान्य)

Type: ghat

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A pilgrim at dawn on a riverbank: first chewing a small twig for tooth-cleaning, then stepping into sacred waters for morning bath; sunrise, calm river, simple ascetic mood.

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

External cleanliness—beginning with dental cleansing and morning bathing—supports inner purity and dhārmic living.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No single named tīrtha is specified; the verse praises bathing at any tīrtha as especially purifying.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Chewing a tooth-cleaning twig of a prescribed measure, followed by morning bathing—preferably at a tīrtha.