Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 86

Devanagari script

गवां क्षीरेण दध्ना च पंचगव्यैर्घृतैस्तथा । रामनाथमहालिंगस्नानं नरकनाशनम्

Transliteration

gavāṃ kṣīreṇa dadhnā ca paṃcagavyairghṛtaistathā | rāmanāthamahāliṃgasnānaṃ narakanāśanam

Translation

Das Bad des großen Liṅga von Rāmanātha mit Kuhmilch und Quark, mit pañcagavya und ebenso mit Ghee, vernichtet die Hölle (hebt das Schicksal von naraka auf).

Word by Word

• गवाम्: of cows
• गवाम्: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गो (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (6th/Genitive), बहुवचन

• क्षीरेण: with milk
• क्षीरेण: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: क्षीर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन

• दध्ना: with curd/yogurt
• दध्ना: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दधि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• पञ्चगव्यैः: with the five cow-products (pañcagavya)
• पञ्चगव्यैः: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पञ्च + गव्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (3rd/Instrumental), बहुवचन; द्विगु-समासः (पञ्च गव्यानि)

• घृतैः: with ghee
• घृतैः: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: घृत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (3rd/Instrumental), बहुवचन

• तथा: also
• तथा: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चय/प्रकारार्थ (also/likewise)

• रामनाथमहालिङ्गस्नानम्: the bath (ritual bathing) of the great liṅga of Rāmanātha
• रामनाथमहालिङ्गस्नानम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रामनाथ + महालिङ्ग + स्नान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; समासः—षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (रामनाथस्य) + कर्मधारय/तत्पुरुष (महालिङ्ग) + षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (स्नानम्)

• नरकनाशनम्: destroyer of hell (i.e., removes hellish fate)
• नरकनाशनम्: Karta (Subject-complement/कर्तृविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नरक + नाशन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष (नरकस्य नाशनम्); विशेषणम् (रामनाथमहालिङ्गस्नानम्)

Speaker

Skanda (deduced from Setukhaṇḍa Māhātmya narration style)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Rāmanātha Mahāliṅga

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Multiple streams—milk, curd, ghee, and pañcagavya—cascade over the dark stone liṅga; white and golden liquids swirl like sacred rivers; a symbolic ‘hellfire’ motif extinguishes beneath the pedestal.

Characters & Entities

• Rāmanātha
• Mahāliṅga
• Pañcagavya
• Ghṛta
• Naraka

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Abhiṣeka offered with pure substances and devotion functions as a powerful purifier that removes severe karmic consequences.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Rāmanātha/Rāmeśvara at Setu (Rāmeśvaram), focusing on the mahāliṅga.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Liṅga-snāna/abhiṣeka using cow’s milk, curd, pañcagavya, and ghee.