Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 159

Devanagari script

स्वस्थं च हृदयं कृत्वा सस्नौ तत्सरसि ध्रुवम् । तथैव जलमानीय बिल्वपत्त्रं त्वरान्वितः

Transliteration

svasthaṃ ca hṛdayaṃ kṛtvā sasnau tatsarasi dhruvam | tathaiva jalamānīya bilvapattraṃ tvarānvitaḥ

Translation

Puis, apaisant son cœur, il se baigna assurément dans ce lac. De même, apportant de l'eau et des feuilles de bilva en toute hâte,

Word by Word

• स्वस्थम्: calm/steady
• स्वस्थम्: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स्वस्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifying ‘hṛdayam’)

• च: and
• च: Samuccaya (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयार्थक (conjunction: and)

• हृदयम्: heart/mind
• हृदयम्: Karma (Object of ‘kṛtvā’)
• Type: Noun
• Root: हृदय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन

• कृत्वा: having made
• कृत्वा: Pūrvakāla-kriyā (Prior action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त; क्त्वा-प्रत्ययान्त अव्ययभाव (gerund/absolutive); (having made)

• सस्नौ: he bathed
• सस्नौ: Kriyā (Action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्ना (धातु)
• Form: लिट्-लकार (perfect), परस्मैपद; प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• तत्: that
• तत्: Viśeṣaṇa
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम; नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifying ‘sarasi’)

• सरसि: in the lake
• सरसि: Adhikaraṇa (Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सरस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/अधिकरण), एकवचन

• ध्रुवम्: certainly
• ध्रुवम्: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ध्रुवम् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निश्चयार्थक (adverb: certainly)

• तथा: thus
• तथा: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकारवाचक (thus/in that manner)

• एव: indeed
• एव: Nipāta (Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारणार्थक (just/indeed)

• जलम्: water
• जलम्: Karma (Object of ‘ānīya’)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन

• आनीय: having brought
• आनीय: Pūrvakāla-kriyā (Prior action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: नी (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त; ल्यप्-प्रत्ययान्त अव्ययभाव (gerund/absolutive); ‘आ’-उपसर्ग; (having brought)

• बिल्व-पत्त्रम्: bilva leaf
• बिल्व-पत्त्रम्: Karma (Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: बिल्व (प्रातिपदिक) + पत्त्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (bilvasya pattram)

• त्वरा-अन्वितः: endowed with haste
• त्वरा-अन्वितः: Viśeṣaṇa (Qualifier of subject)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: त्वरा (प्रातिपदिक) + अन्वित (प्रातिपदिक; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; तृतीया/षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषार्थे (tvarayā anvitaḥ / tvarāyāḥ anvitaḥ); विशेषणम् (qualifying the doer)

Speaker

Narrator (Sūta/Lomaharṣaṇa) describing the devotee’s worship-preparation

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kedāra-kṣetra (sacred saras within)

Type: kund

Visual Art Cues

Scene: The Kirāta, now composed, bathes in a clear mountain lake; he then hastens to fetch water and fresh bilva leaves, preparing for Śiva worship.

Characters & Entities

• Kirāta
• Bilva (as offering to Śiva)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Inner composure (steady heart) and outer purity (tīrtha-snān) together prepare the devotee for fruitful worship.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

A sacred lake/tīrtha associated with Kedāra, where bathing is portrayed as part of approaching Śiva.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Tīrtha-snān (bathing) and collecting water and bilva leaves for Śiva worship are explicitly indicated.