Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 166

Devanagari script

आचम्य पुनराचम्य क्रियाः कुर्वीत सर्वशः । क्षुते निष्ठीविते चैव दंतलग्ने तथैव च

Transliteration

ācamya punarācamya kriyāḥ kurvīta sarvaśaḥ | kṣute niṣṭhīvite caiva daṃtalagne tathaiva ca

Translation

Nachdem man Ācamana vollzogen hat und es bei Bedarf wiederholt, soll man alle Riten überall ausführen. Ebenso nach dem Niesen, nach dem Ausspucken und wenn etwas zwischen den Zähnen festhängt, soll man die Reinigung erneut vollziehen.

Word by Word

• ācamya: having sipped (water)
• ācamya: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial modifier)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ā-√cam (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund), अव्ययभाव (indeclinable verbal), पूर्वकाले (prior action): “having sipped (ācamana)”

• punar: again
• punar: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial modifier)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: punar (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, पुनरुक्त्यर्थक (adverb: again)

• ācamya: having sipped
• ācamya: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial modifier)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ā-√cam (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund), अव्ययभाव: “having sipped”

• kriyāḥ: rites/acts (ritual actions)
• kriyāḥ: Karma (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kriyā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st case/Nominative), बहुवचन

• kurvīta: should perform
• kurvīta: Kriyā (Predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kṛ (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन

• sarvaśaḥ: in all cases / entirely
• sarvaśaḥ: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial modifier)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sarvaśas (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, प्रकारवाचक (adverb: in every way/always)

• kṣute: when sneezing
• kṣute: Adhikaraṇa (Locative circumstance)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṣu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th case/Locative), एकवचन; ‘क्षुत’ (sneeze) as occasion

• niṣṭhīvite: when spitting
• niṣṭhīvite: Adhikaraṇa (Locative circumstance)
• Type: Noun
• Root: niṣṭhīvita (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (Locative), एकवचन; ‘spitting’ as occasion

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, समुच्चयार्थक (conjunction: and)

• eva: indeed/just
• eva: Nipāta (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, अवधारणार्थक (particle: indeed/just)

• daṃtalagne: when something sticks to the teeth
• daṃtalagne: Adhikaraṇa (Locative circumstance)
• Type: Noun
• Root: daṃta + lagna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (षष्ठी/सप्तमी-सम्बन्ध: ‘tooth-attached’), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (Locative), एकवचन

• tathā: thus/likewise
• tathā: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial modifier)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, प्रकारवाचक (adverb: thus/so)

• eva: indeed
• eva: Nipāta (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, अवधारणार्थक (particle: indeed)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, समुच्चयार्थक (and)

Speaker

Lomaharṣaṇa (Sūta) to the sages

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A disciplined sādhaka seated on kuśa grass near a small water vessel (kamaṇḍalu), performing ācamana with right hand, pausing after a sneeze/spit, then re-purifying before continuing japa.

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Dharma is safeguarded by alertness to purity—small lapses are corrected by simple restorative rites.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No tīrtha is mentioned; the focus is practical ritual discipline.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Repeat ācamana whenever impurity is incurred—especially after sneezing, spitting, or dental obstruction.