Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 70

Devanagari script

निर्धूतकल्मषं जातं नर्मदातोययोगतः । तालमेघवधोत्पन्नं यत्पापं नृपनन्दन

Transliteration

nirdhūtakalmaṣaṃ jātaṃ narmadātoyayogataḥ | tālameghavadhotpannaṃ yatpāpaṃ nṛpanandana

Translation

Par le contact des eaux de la Narmadā, le péché né du meurtre de Tālamegha fut secoué et se trouva purifié, ô prince.

Word by Word

• निर्धूत-कल्मषम्: with sin shaken off; purified
• निर्धूत-कल्मषम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: निर्धूत (कृदन्त; निर्+धू धातु + क्त) + कल्मष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण (Neuter, Nom/Acc, Singular; ‘sin removed’)

• जातम्: arisen; produced
• जातम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: जन् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; भूतकृदन्त (क्त) (Neuter, Nom/Acc, Singular; ‘arisen/produced’)

• नर्मदा-तोय-योगतः: due to contact with Narmadā’s water
• नर्मदा-तोय-योगतः: Hetu (Cause/हेतु)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नर्मदा (प्रातिपदिक) + तोय (प्रातिपदिक) + योग (प्रातिपदिक) + तस् (अव्यय-प्रत्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; तसिल्-प्रत्ययान्त (ablatival adverb) ‘योगतः’ = ‘due to/through contact’ (Indeclinable)

• ताल-मेघ-वध-उत्पन्नम्: arisen from the killing of Tāla and Megha
• ताल-मेघ-वध-उत्पन्नम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ताल (प्रातिपदिक) + मेघ (प्रातिपदिक) + वध (प्रातिपदिक) + उत्पन्न (कृदन्त; उत्+पद्/पन् धातु + क्त)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण (Neuter, Nom/Acc, Singular; ‘arisen from the slaying of Tāla and Megha’)

• यत्: which
• यत्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; सम्बन्धसूचक (relative pronoun) (Neuter, Nom/Acc, Singular)

• पापम्: sin
• पापम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पाप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Neuter, Nom/Acc, Singular)

• नृप-नन्दन: O prince (king’s son)
• नृप-नन्दन: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नृप (प्रातिपदिक) + नन्दन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन-विभक्ति, एकवचन (Masculine, Vocative, Singular)

Speaker

Narrator (contextual Purāṇic narrator, likely Sūta/Skanda framework within Revā Khaṇḍa)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Cakratīrtha (Narmadā)

Type: ghat

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Prince/king (nṛpanandana)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A penitent figure stands waist-deep in Narmadā, water shimmering; a dark, smoky ‘sin’ form dissolves and lifts away as the river’s light washes it clean; sages witness, holding kuśa and waterpots.

Characters & Entities

• Narmadā
• Tālamegha
• Nṛpanandana

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Narmadā is proclaimed as a purifier: her sacred waters dispel impurity and neutralize sin, reaffirming tīrtha as a vehicle of grace.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Revā/Narmadā herself—especially her waters (narmadā-toya)—is glorified as intrinsically purifying.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Implied tīrtha-snāna: purification occurs through contact with Narmadā’s waters, supporting the practice of bathing and reverent immersion.