Skanda Purana — Brahma Khanda, Shloka 35

Devanagari script

मूत्रोत्सर्गपुरीषेण दूषयेत्पुण्यभूमिकाः । गहनेन तथा राजन्स्त्रियो दूषयते हि सः

Transliteration

mūtrotsargapurīṣeṇa dūṣayetpuṇyabhūmikāḥ | gahanena tathā rājanstriyo dūṣayate hi saḥ

Translation

En urinant et en déféquant en un lieu impropre, on souille la terre sacrée ; de même, ô Roi, en s’unissant en secret (illicitement), l’homme souille en vérité les femmes et leur honneur.

Word by Word

• मूत्रोत्सर्गपुरीषेण: by urine-discharge and feces
• मूत्रोत्सर्गपुरीषेण: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मूत्र (प्रातिपदिक) + उत्सर्ग (प्रातिपदिक) + पुरीष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (करण/Instrumental), एकवचन; समासः—द्वन्द्व (मूत्रोत्सर्ग + पुरीष)

• दूषयेत्: should defile
• दूषयेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दूष् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• पुण्यभूमिकाः: holy grounds/places
• पुण्यभूमिकाः: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुण्य (प्रातिपदिक) + भूमिका (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (कर्म/Object), बहुवचन; समासः—कर्मधारय (पुण्या भूमिका)

• गहनेन: by (entering) a thicket/remote place
• गहनेन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गहन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (करण/Instrumental), एकवचन

• तथा: likewise
• तथा: Avyaya (Modifier/अव्यय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकारवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (adverb: 'thus/likewise')

• राजन्: O king
• राजन्: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: राजन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative/सम्बोधन), एकवचन

• स्त्रियः: women
• स्त्रियः: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्त्री (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (कर्म/Object), बहुवचन

• दूषयते: defiles
• दूषयते: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दूष् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• हि: indeed
• हि: Avyaya (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: हि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात (particle: emphasis/indeed)

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

Speaker

Unspecified narrator (Purāṇic narration) addressing a King (rājan/nareśvara)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Dharmāraṇya (contextual sacred forest)

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: राजन् (King)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A sacred forest-kṣetra with a marked tīrtha precinct; a dharma-teacher admonishes a king about purity—showing boundaries, latrine-away zones, and women protected within a dignified household space.

Characters & Entities

• King (rājan)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Purity of place and purity of conduct are both dharmic duties; disrespecting sacred ground or engaging in secretive wrongdoing brings spiritual and social harm.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Dharmāraṇya sacred region is implied as ‘puṇya-bhūmi’—a holy landscape that must be kept ritually pure.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

A moral-ritual rule of śauca: do not contaminate sacred land with bodily waste; uphold ethical restraint to avoid defilement.