Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 39

Devanagari script

गोमत्यां यः सकृत्स्नात्वा पश्येत्कृष्णमुखांबुजम् । सर्वानुद्धरते पापादपि त्रैलाक्यदाहकात्

Transliteration

gomatyāṃ yaḥ sakṛtsnātvā paśyetkṛṣṇamukhāṃbujam | sarvānuddharate pāpādapi trailākyadāhakāt

Translation

Wer auch nur einmal in der Gomatī badet und das lotusgleiche Antlitz Kṛṣṇas schaut, der erlöst alle von Sünde, selbst von den Sünden, die die drei Welten verbrennen.

Word by Word

• गोमत्याम्: in (the river) Gomati
• गोमत्याम्: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गोमती (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन

• यः: who
• यः: Karta (Relative subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• सकृत्: once
• सकृत्: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial modifier)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सकृत् (अव्यय)
• Form: काल/आवृत्तिवाचक अव्यय (once)

• स्नात्वा: having bathed
• स्नात्वा: Purvakala-kriya (Prior action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्ना (धातु) + त्वा (क्त्वान्त)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund), पूर्वकालिक क्रिया

• पश्येत्: should see
• पश्येत्: Kriya (Main verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दृश् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• कृष्णमुखाम्बुजम्: Kṛṣṇa’s lotus-like face
• कृष्णमुखाम्बुजम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कृष्ण-मुख-अम्बुज (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (कृष्णस्य मुखम्; मुखम् अम्बुजम् इव) समाससमूहः, नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• सर्वान्: all (persons)
• सर्वान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, बहुवचन

• उद्धरते: lifts out, delivers
• उद्धरते: Kriya (Main verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: उद् + हृ (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, आत्मनेपद

• पापात्: from sin
• पापात्: Apadana (Source/अपाादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पाप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (Ablative), एकवचन

• अपि: even
• अपि: Sambandha (Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय/अप्यर्थक निपात (also/even)

• त्रैलाक्यदाहकात्: from the burner of the three worlds (i.e., terrible sin/hellfire)
• त्रैलाक्यदाहकात्: Apadana (Source/अपाादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: त्रैलोक्य-दाहक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (त्रैलोक्यस्य दाहकः), पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी, एकवचन

Speaker

Pāṃthika (within Vasiṣṭha’s narrated dialogue)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Gomatī (Dvārakā)

Type: ghat

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: King (addressed as rājan, anagha)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A pilgrim enters the Gomatī at dawn, water shimmering; after snāna he beholds Kṛṣṇa’s lotus-like face—radiant, compassionate—while the darkness of sin is shown dissolving like smoke across the three worlds.

Characters & Entities

• Gomatī River
• Kṛṣṇa
• Dvārakā

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Bathing in a sanctified tīrtha and beholding the Lord grants profound purification and upliftment.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Gomatī river-tīrtha at Dvārakā is explicitly glorified.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Snāna (bathing) in the Gomatī and darśana (beholding) of Kṛṣṇa.