Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 81

Devanagari script

स तच्छीकरसंस्पर्शात्त्यक्त्वा वेतालतां तदा । तदेव मानुषं भावं द्विजपुत्रत्वमाप्तवान्

Transliteration

sa tacchīkarasaṃsparśāttyaktvā vetālatāṃ tadā | tadeva mānuṣaṃ bhāvaṃ dvijaputratvamāptavān

Translation

Durch die bloße Berührung jener Tropfen legte er sogleich den Zustand eines Vetāla ab und erlangte wieder das Menschsein—erneut wurde er zum Sohn eines Brāhmaṇa.

Word by Word

• सः: he
• सः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1/प्रथमा), एकवचन — Nominative singular pronoun

• तत्: of that
• तत्: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6/षष्ठी), एकवचन — Genitive singular (used with following compound)

• शीकरसंस्पर्शात्: from the contact of the droplets
• शीकरसंस्पर्शात्: Apadana (Source/Cause/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शीकर (प्रातिपदिक) + संस्पर्श (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5/पञ्चमी), एकवचन — Ablative singular; समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (शीकरस्य संस्पर्शः)

• त्यक्त्वा: having abandoned
• त्यक्त्वा: Purvakala-kriya (Prior action/पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: त्यज् (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त (क्त्वा-प्रत्यय, अव्ययभाव) — Gerund/absolutive

• वेतालताम्: the state of being a vetāla
• वेतालताम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: वेतालता (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2/द्वितीया), एकवचन — Accusative singular

• तदा: then
• तदा: Kala-adhikarana (Time/काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तदा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (कालवाचक) — Indeclinable adverb of time

• तत्: that
• तत्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2/द्वितीया), एकवचन — Accusative singular; विशेषणम् (भावम्)

• एव: indeed, exactly
• एव: None (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (अवधारण) — Emphatic/limiting particle

• मानुषम्: human
• मानुषम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मानुष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2/द्वितीया), एकवचन — Accusative singular; विशेषणम् (भावम्)

• भावम्: state, condition
• भावम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भाव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2/द्वितीया), एकवचन — Accusative singular

• द्विजपुत्रत्वम्: the status of being a Brahmin’s son
• द्विजपुत्रत्वम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्विज (प्रातिपदिक) + पुत्रत्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2/द्वितीया), एकवचन — Accusative singular; समासः षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (द्विजस्य पुत्रत्वम्)

• आप्तवान्: attained
• आप्तवान्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: आप् (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त (क्तवत्-प्रत्यय), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1/प्रथमा), एकवचन — Perfective past (possessive) participle used as finite sense

Speaker

Unspecified narrator (Setukhaṇḍa narrative voice)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Setu-tīrtha

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Brāhmaṇas/Ṛṣis

Visual Art Cues

Scene: The afflicted being sheds the terrifying vetāla aspect as the droplets touch him; his form softens into a youthful brāhmaṇa’s son, calm-faced, with sacred thread reappearing.

Characters & Entities

• Vetāla
• Tīrtha droplets (śīkara)
• Dvija (brāhmaṇa)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Tīrtha-mahātmyas teach that divine grace can instantly restore dhārmic identity and dignity when impurity or curse is removed.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The tīrtha later designated Vetāla-varadā, famed for removing vetālatva.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Implicitly, contact with or bathing in tīrtha-water is efficacious; the narrative emphasizes even droplets can purify.