Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 6

Devanagari script

तस्य शुद्धिकृते देयं धटं ब्राह्मणसत्तमाः । धटे तु शुद्धिमापन्ने ततोऽसौ शुद्धतां व्रजेत्

Transliteration

tasya śuddhikṛte deyaṃ dhaṭaṃ brāhmaṇasattamāḥ | dhaṭe tu śuddhimāpanne tato'sau śuddhatāṃ vrajet

Translation

Zu seiner Reinigung, o erhabenste der Brāhmaṇas, soll man ihm ein dhaṭa geben. Wenn dieses dhaṭa gereinigt ist, dann gelangt auch er selbst zur Reinheit.

Word by Word

• तस्य: of him
• तस्य: Sambandha (Possessor/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-विभक्ति (6th/Genitive), एकवचन

• शुद्धिकृते: for (his) purification
• शुद्धिकृते: Sampradana (Purpose/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शुद्धि-कृत (प्रातिपदिक; शुद्धि + कृत)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी-विभक्ति (4th/Dative), एकवचन; प्रयोजनार्थ

• देयम्: is to be given
• देयम्: Kriya (Obligation/विधेय)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दा (धातु)
• Form: यत्-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (gerundive), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; विधेयार्थ

• धटम्: a dhaṭa (ritual item; vessel/measure)
• धटम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धट (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• ब्राह्मणसत्तमाः: O best of Brahmins
• ब्राह्मणसत्तमाः: Sambodhana (Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्राह्मण-सत्तम (प्रातिपदिक; ब्राह्मण + सत्तम)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; संबोधनार्थे प्रथमा (vocative sense)

• धटे: in/with the dhaṭa
• धटे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धट (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (7th/Locative), एकवचन

• तु: then/indeed
• तु: Sambandha (Discourse particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle)

• शुद्धिम्: purification
• शुद्धिम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शुद्धि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• आपन्ने: when attained/when it has occurred
• आपन्ने: Adhikarana (Locative absolute-like)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: आ-√पद् (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण

• ततः: thereafter
• ततः: Sambandha (Sequence marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, क्रमसूचक

• असौ: that person
• असौ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: असद्/अदस् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• शुद्धताम्: purity
• शुद्धताम्: Karma (Goal/object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शुद्धता (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• व्रजेत्: should attain/go to
• व्रजेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: व्रज् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथम-पुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन

Speaker

Viśvāmitra (deduced from immediate narrative context in Adhyāya 204)

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Brāhmaṇa-sattamāḥ addressed within the narration; primary addressee remains the king

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A brāhmaṇa-ācārya instructs the donor to present a dhaṭa; the vessel/object is ritually washed, sanctified with mantras, and accepted; the donor stands purified afterward.

Characters & Entities

• Brāhmaṇa

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Purification is supported by dāna (charitable giving), aligning personal renewal with sacred, prescribed acts.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

No named tīrtha appears in this verse; it occurs within the broader Tīrthamāhātmya discourse of the Nāgarakhaṇḍa.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

A purificatory gift called “dhaṭa” is prescribed to be given as part of śuddhi (ritual purification).