Skanda Purana — Avanti Khanda, Shloka 1

Devanagari script

श्रीमार्कण्डेय उवाच । ततो गच्छेच्च राजेन्द्र कपिलातीर्थमुत्तमम् । स्नानमात्रान्नरो भक्त्या मुच्यते सर्वकिल्बिषैः

Transliteration

śrīmārkaṇḍeya uvāca | tato gacchecca rājendra kapilātīrthamuttamam | snānamātrānnaro bhaktyā mucyate sarvakilbiṣaiḥ

Translation

Śrī Mārkaṇḍeya bersabda: “Kemudian, wahai raja di antara para raja, hendaklah engkau pergi ke Kapilā Tīrtha yang utama. Dengan mandi di sana saja, seorang insan yang berbhakti terbebas dari segala dosa dan noda.”

Word by Word

• śrīmārkaṇḍeyaḥ: the venerable Mārkaṇḍeya
• śrīmārkaṇḍeyaḥ: Karta (Speaker/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śrī (प्रातिपदिक) + mārkaṇḍeya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; (श्रीमान् मार्कण्डेयः)

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular)

• tataḥ: then; thereafter
• tataḥ: Sambandha (Temporal/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (अव्यय/प्रातिपदिक-निबद्ध)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb), ततः = then/thereafter

• gacchet: should go
• gacchet: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: gam (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय (conjunction)

• rājendra: O king of kings
• rājendra: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rājan (प्रातिपदिक) + indra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सम्बोधन (Vocative), एकवचन; पुंलिङ्ग; (राज्ञाम् इन्द्रः)

• kapilā-tīrtham: the Kapilā ford (tīrtha)
• kapilā-tīrtham: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kapilā (प्रातिपदिक) + tīrtha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; (कपिलायाः तीर्थम्)

• uttamam: excellent; best
• uttamam: Visheshana (Adjectival/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: uttama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifying tīrtham)

• snāna-mātrāt: from mere bathing
• snāna-mātrāt: Apadana (Cause/Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: snāna (प्रातिपदिक) + mātra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/Ablative), एकवचन; (स्नानस्य मात्रम्; तस्मात्)

• naraḥ: a man
• naraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• bhaktyā: with devotion
• bhaktyā: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhakti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन

• mucyate: is freed
• mucyate: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: muc (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; कर्मणि प्रयोग (passive sense)

• sarva-kilbiṣaiḥ: from all sins
• sarva-kilbiṣaiḥ: Apadana (Separation/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक) + kilbiṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), बहुवचन; (सर्वाणि किल्बिषाणि)

Speaker

Śrī Mārkaṇḍeya

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kapilā Tīrtha

Type: ghat

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: rājendra (Yudhiṣṭhira in the Mahābhārata-linked frame)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Mārkaṇḍeya instructs a king: a pilgrim approaches a serene river ford labeled Kapilā Tīrtha, steps into the water with folded hands; dark stains (symbolic sins) dissolve into the current.

Characters & Entities

• Mārkaṇḍeya
• Kapilā-tīrtha

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Devotion (bhakti) joined with a simple sacred act like bathing at a tīrtha can cleanse accumulated moral impurity and reorient one toward dharma.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Kapilā-tīrtha, praised in the Revā Khaṇḍa as an excellent pilgrimage spot connected to the Narmadā sacred landscape.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Snāna (ritual bathing) at Kapilā-tīrtha, explicitly said to grant purification when performed with devotion.