Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 41

Devanagari script

स सदा रात्रिशौचार्थं कपालं जलपूरितम् । मदीयं शयने चक्रे तत्र कृत्वा निजां क्रियाम्

Transliteration

sa sadā rātriśaucārthaṃ kapālaṃ jalapūritam | madīyaṃ śayane cakre tatra kṛtvā nijāṃ kriyām

Translation

„Er füllte stets zur nächtlichen Reinigung eine Kapāla, eine Schädelschale, mit Wasser. Nachdem er dort seine eigene Observanz vollzogen hatte, stellte er sie an meinen Schlafplatz.“

Word by Word

• saḥ: he
• saḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• sadā: always
• sadā: Kriya-visheshaṇa (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sadā (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (adverb of time)

• rātri-śauca-artham: for the purpose of nightly cleansing
• rātri-śauca-artham: Prayojana (Purpose/प्रयोजन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rātri (प्रातिपदिक) + śauca (प्रातिपदिक) + artha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; प्रयोजनार्थे (for the purpose of)

• kapālam: skull-bowl
• kapālam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kapāla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• jala-pūritam: filled with water
• jala-pūritam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: jala (प्रातिपदिक) + pūrita (प्रातिपदिक; √pṝ/पूर्)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; क्त (PPP) विशेषण

• madīyam: my
• madīyam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: madīya (प्रातिपदिक; mad-सम्बन्धी)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन; विशेषण (śayane)

• śayane: on the bed
• śayane: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śayana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन

• cakre: placed/made
• cakre: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kṛ (कृ धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय (adverb of place)

• kṛtvā: having done
• kṛtvā: Purva-kala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: √kṛ (कृ धातु)
• Form: क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त अव्यय (absolutive/gerund)

• nijām: his own
• nijām: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nija (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण

• kriyām: rite, act
• kriyām: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kriyā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

Speaker

Preta (a departed spirit)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Hāṭakeśvara

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Unnamed questioner

Visual Art Cues

Scene: At night the ascetic fills a skull-bowl with water for purification rites; after completing his observance, he places the water-filled kapāla near the preta’s sleeping place.

Characters & Entities

• Śiva (context)
• Kapāla (skull-bowl)
• Austerity/observance (kriyā)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Disciplined purity-practices and austere observances are portrayed as potent and spiritually consequential within a sacred kṣetra.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The passage continues the glorification of the Hāṭakeśvara region near the Gaṅgā–Yamunā saṅgama.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Nightly purification using water kept in a kapāla (skull-bowl) as part of an ascetic’s personal observance.