Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 3

Devanagari script

तत्र तीर्थे तु यो भक्त्या शुचिर्भूत्वा समाहितः । स्नापयेच्छङ्खचूडं तु क्षीरक्षौद्रेण सर्पिषा

Transliteration

tatra tīrthe tu yo bhaktyā śucirbhūtvā samāhitaḥ | snāpayecchaṅkhacūḍaṃ tu kṣīrakṣaudreṇa sarpiṣā

Translation

En ce tīrtha, celui qui, avec bhakti, se purifie et recueille son esprit, doit baigner Śaṅkhacūḍa de lait, de miel et de ghee (beurre clarifié).

Word by Word

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (Locative setting/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (स्थानवाचक क्रियाविशेषण) — indeclinable adverb of place

• तीर्थे: at the sacred ford/place of pilgrimage
• तीर्थे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमीविभक्ति (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन — neuter, locative singular

• तु: indeed/and
• तु: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (निपात/अवधारणार्थक) — particle, contrast/emphasis

• यः: who (he who)
• यः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन — masculine, nominative singular (relative pronoun)

• भक्त्या: with devotion
• भक्त्या: Karana (Instrument/means/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भक्ति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), एकवचन — feminine, instrumental singular

• शुचिः: pure
• शुचिः: Karta (Subject complement/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शुचि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन — masculine, nominative singular (predicate adjective)

• भूत्वा: having become
• भूत्वा: Kriya (Prior action/पूर्वक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (अव्ययकृदन्त), पूर्वकालिक क्रिया — gerund/absolutive ‘having become’

• समाहितः: composed/collected (in mind)
• समाहितः: Karta (Subject complement/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सम्-आ-धा (धातु) → समाहित (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (क्त), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — past passive participle, masculine nominative singular

• स्नापयेत्: should bathe (cause to be bathed)
• स्नापयेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्ना (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (आज्ञार्थ/imperative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन — imperative, 3rd person singular; causative sense ‘cause to bathe’

• शङ्खचूडम्: Śaṅkhacūḍa (name)
• शङ्खचूडम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शङ्खचूड (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन — masculine, accusative singular (object)

• तु: indeed/and
• तु: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (निपात) — particle, emphasis

• क्षीरक्षौद्रेण: with milk and honey
• क्षीरक्षौद्रेण: Karana (Instrument/means/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: क्षीर + क्षौद्र (प्रातिपदिके)
• Form: द्वन्द्वसमास (इतरेतर), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन — dvandva compound, neuter instrumental singular

• सर्पिषा: with ghee
• सर्पिषा: Karana (Instrument/means/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सर्पिस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया, एकवचन — neuter instrumental singular

Speaker

Mārkaṇḍeya

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Śaṅkhacūḍa-tīrtha (as implied)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: null

Visual Art Cues

Scene: On a serene Narmadā-bank shrine, a devotee in clean white cloth performs abhiṣeka to the Śaṅkhacūḍa liṅga with streams of milk, honey, and ghee; attendants hold vessels; lamps flicker; river and trees frame the sanctum.

Characters & Entities

• Śaṅkhacūḍa
• Śaṅkhacūḍa Tīrtha

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Purity, concentration, and bhakti empower ritual action; devotional offering becomes a means of purification and merit.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Śaṅkhacūḍa Tīrtha on the Narmadā.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Abhiṣeka/snāpana of Śaṅkhacūḍa using milk (kṣīra), honey (kṣaudra), and ghee (sarpiṣ).