Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 154

Devanagari script

नाप्सु मूत्रं पुरीषं वा मैथुनं वा समाचरेत् । कृत्वा विभवतो देवमनुष्यर्षिसमर्चनाम्

Transliteration

nāpsu mūtraṃ purīṣaṃ vā maithunaṃ vā samācaret | kṛtvā vibhavato devamanuṣyarṣisamarcanām

Translation

Man soll weder in Wasser urinieren noch sich darin erleichtern, noch dort den Geschlechtsakt vollziehen. Danach soll man, den eigenen Mitteln entsprechend, zuerst die gebührende Verehrung der Gottheiten, der ehrwürdigen Menschen und der Ṛṣis darbringen.

Word by Word

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (Negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-निपात (negation)

• apsu: in water
• apsu: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ap (आप्/अप् प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), बहुवचन (fem. loc. pl.)

• mūtram: urine
• mūtram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mūtra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (neut. acc. sg.)

• purīṣam: feces
• purīṣam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: purīṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (neut. acc. sg.)

• vā: or
• vā: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vā (अव्यय)
• Form: विकल्प-निपात (disjunctive particle: or)

• maithunam: sexual intercourse
• maithunam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: maithuna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन (neut. acc. sg.)

• vā: or
• vā: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vā (अव्यय)
• Form: विकल्प-निपात (or)

• samācaret: should do/practice
• samācaret: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-ā-car (सम्+आ+चर् धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद (3rd sg. opt. P.)

• kṛtvā: having performed
• kṛtvā: Purvakala (Prior action)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kṛ (कृ धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त अव्ययभाव (gerund): having done

• vibhavataḥ: according to ability
• vibhavataḥ: Sambandha (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vibhava (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तसिल्-प्रत्ययान्त अव्यय (according to one’s means)

• deva-manuṣya-ṛṣi-samarcanām: worship of gods, humans, and sages
• deva-manuṣya-ṛṣi-samarcanām: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deva (प्रातिपदिक) + manuṣya (प्रातिपदिक) + ṛṣi (प्रातिपदिक) + samarcanā (प्रातिपदिक; सम्+अर्च्)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; समाहार-द्वन्द्व (collective copulative)

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) addressing the sages (deduced from Māheśvarakhaṇḍa context)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Āpaḥ (general sacred waters)

Type: ghat

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A pilgrim at a river-ghāṭ performs worship with flowers and water offerings, while clear signage/space indicates separation from impure acts; the river is personified as a goddess witnessing proper conduct.

Characters & Entities

• Deva
• Ṛṣi

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Purity (śauca) and reverence: protect water from impurity and begin religious life with honoring devas, worthy persons, and ṛṣis.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No single tīrtha is named in this verse; it gives general Māheśvara conduct applicable at all sacred waters and pilgrimage sites.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Perform worship/ honoring (arcanā) of devas, respected humans/guests, and ṛṣis according to one’s means.