Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 48

Devanagari script

रक्तमांसमदालिप्ते विण्मूत्रद्रव्यभाजने । केशरोमतृणच्छन्ने सुवर्णत्वक्सुधूतके

Transliteration

raktamāṃsamadālipte viṇmūtradravyabhājane | keśaromatṛṇacchanne suvarṇatvaksudhūtake

Translation

Souillé de sang et de chair, un récipient contenant ordures et urine — couvert de poils comme de l'herbe — pourtant lavé et déguisé sous un vernis de « peau dorée ».

Word by Word

• rakta-māṃsa-madā-lipte: in/with (a vessel) smeared with blood, flesh, and filth
• rakta-māṃsa-madā-lipte: Adhikarana (Location-qualifier/अधिकरणविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: rakta (प्रातिपदिक) + māṃsa (प्रातिपदिक) + mada (प्रातिपदिक) + √lip (धातु) → lipta (कृदन्त)
• Form: बहुपद-तत्पुरुष-समास; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (lipta = “smeared”); नपुंसकलिङ्ग (n.), सप्तमी (Loc.), एकवचन; विशेषण (bhājane implied)

• viṇ-mūtra-dravya-bhājane: in a receptacle of feces-and-urine substances
• viṇ-mūtra-dravya-bhājane: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viṇ (प्रातिपदिक) + mūtra (प्रातिपदिक) + dravya (प्रातिपदिक) + bhājana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: बहुपद-तत्पुरुष-समास; नपुंसकलिङ्ग (n.), सप्तमी (Loc.), एकवचन

• keśa-roma-tṛṇa-chann(e): covered with hair, body-hair, and straw
• keśa-roma-tṛṇa-chann(e): Adhikarana (Location-qualifier/अधिकरणविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: keśa (प्रातिपदिक) + roma (प्रातिपदिक) + tṛṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + √chad (धातु) → channa (कृदन्त)
• Form: बहुपद-तत्पुरुष-समास; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (channa = “covered”); नपुंसकलिङ्ग (n.), सप्तमी (Loc.), एकवचन; विशेषण

• suvarṇa-tvaksu-dhūtake: (yet) well-washed with a golden outer skin (appearance)
• suvarṇa-tvaksu-dhūtake: Adhikarana (Location-qualifier/अधिकरणविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: suvarṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + tvak (प्रातिपदिक) + su (उपसर्ग/अव्यय) + √dhū (धातु) → dhūta (कृदन्त)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (suvarṇa-tvak = “golden skin/bark”) + उपसर्ग su- सहित क्त-कृदन्त (sudhūta = “well-washed/cleansed”); नपुंसकलिङ्ग (n.), सप्तमी (Loc.), एकवचन; विशेषण

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) addressing the sages (deduced from Māheśvarakhaṇḍa convention)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A symbolic figure with a radiant outer skin overlay, partially peeled back to reveal inner reality (blood/flesh), juxtaposed with a pure Śiva-liṅga or sacred ash to indicate true purity.

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

It exposes the body’s inner impurity and the deception of outward beauty, fostering dispassion and spiritual seriousness.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

None; the verse is a general contemplative teaching rather than a site-glorification.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

No explicit rite is prescribed; the implied practice is contemplative reflection on the body’s true nature.