Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 71

Devanagari script

आपः पुरुषवीर्याश्च पुनंतीर्भूर्भूवःस्वश्च । तैः पुनरमीवघ्नाःसंस्पृशेतात्मना भुवः

Transliteration

āpaḥ puruṣavīryāśca punaṃtīrbhūrbhūvaḥsvaśca | taiḥ punaramīvaghnāḥsaṃspṛśetātmanā bhuvaḥ

Translation

Die Wasser, erfüllt von der Kraft des Puruṣa, reinigen Bhūḥ, Bhuvaḥ und Svaḥ. Wer sie erneut berührt, wird zum Vernichter von Krankheit und heiligt durch sein eigenes Sein die Welten.

Word by Word

• āpaḥ: waters
• āpaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ap (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), बहुवचन (Plural)

• puruṣa-vīryāḥ: having the potency of man / manly potency
• puruṣa-vīryāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: puruṣa (प्रातिपदिक) + vīrya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), बहुवचन (Plural); विशेषण (adjective) of āpaḥ; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (genitive-determinative: 'of man')

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

• punaṃtīḥ: purifying
• punaṃtīḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pū (धातु)
• Form: वर्तमान-कृदन्त (Present active participle/शतृ), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषण of āpaḥ

• bhūḥ: Bhū (earth-world)
• bhūḥ: Karta (Co-subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhū (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; (लोक-नाम)

• bhuvaḥ: Bhuvaḥ (mid-region)
• bhuvaḥ: Karta (Co-subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhuvas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा, एकवचन; (लोक-नाम)

• svaḥ: Svaḥ (heaven)
• svaḥ: Karta (Co-subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: svar (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; (लोक-नाम)

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

• taiḥ: by them (by those)
• taiḥ: Karaṇa (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग (M/N), तृतीया-विभक्ति (Instrumental/3rd), बहुवचन; सर्वनाम

• punar: again; further
• punar: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: punar (अव्यय)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषण-अव्यय (adverb)

• amīvaghnāḥ: destroyers of disease
• amīvaghnāḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: amīva (प्रातिपदिक) + ghna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषण (understood agents/means); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष ('disease'-slaying)

• saṃspṛśet: should touch
• saṃspṛśet: Kriyā (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: saṃ√spṛś (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative/पोटेन्शियल), प्रथम-पुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular), परस्मैपद

• ātmanā: with oneself; by one’s own self
• ātmanā: Karaṇa (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ātman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन; (स्व-शरीरेण/स्वयम् sense)

• bhuvaḥ: the worlds / the earths
• bhuvaḥ: Karman (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhū (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), बहुवचन

Speaker

The hymn-speakers (inhabitants/varṇas) within Sūta’s narration

Tirtha Mahatmya

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A contemplative pilgrim at a luminous waterbody; the waters rise as personified Āpaḥ carrying Puruṣa-tejas, radiating upward to Bhūḥ-Bhuvaḥ-Svaḥ as three stacked realms being cleansed; subtle aura of healing dispels dark ‘disease’ forms.

Characters & Entities

• Āpaḥ (waters)
• Puruṣa
• Bhūḥ
• Bhuvaḥ
• Svaḥ

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Water is sacred because it carries divine potency; contact with it purifies, heals, and aligns the practitioner with cosmic welfare.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No named terrestrial tīrtha; the teaching is universal, supporting tīrtha-theology where waters sanctify worlds.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Saṃsparśa/snānāṅga: touching (and by implication bathing with) sanctified waters for purification and removal of ailments.