Skanda Purana — Kashi Khanda, Shloka 18

Devanagari script

दत्तात्रेयस्य तत्रास्ति तीर्थं त्रैलोक्यपावनम् । योगसिद्धिं लभे तत्र स्नानमात्रेण भावतः

Transliteration

dattātreyasya tatrāsti tīrthaṃ trailokyapāvanam | yogasiddhiṃ labhe tatra snānamātreṇa bhāvataḥ

Translation

അവിടെ ദത്താത്രേയതീർത്ഥവും ഉണ്ട്; അത് ത്രൈലോക്യത്തെ പാവനമാക്കുന്നു. ഭക്തിഭാവത്തോടെ അവിടെ സ്നാനം മാത്രം ചെയ്താൽ യോഗസിദ്ധി നിശ്ചയമായി ലഭിക്കും.

Word by Word

• दत्तात्रेयस्य: of Dattātreya
• दत्तात्रेयस्य: Shashthi-Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दत्तात्रेय (प्रातिपदिक; दत्त + आत्रेय)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति (सम्बन्ध), एकवचन; नामधेय-समासः

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय

• अस्ति: is/exists
• अस्ति: Kriya (Existence/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: अस् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (वर्तमान), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• तीर्थम्: a tīrtha
• तीर्थम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तीर्थ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन

• त्रैलोक्यपावनम्: purifier of the three worlds
• त्रैलोक्यपावनम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: त्रैलोक्यपावन (प्रातिपदिक; त्रैलोक्य + पावन)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘त्रैलोक्यस्य पावनम्’ इति; तीर्थम् इति विशेषणम्

• योगसिद्धिम्: yogic attainment
• योगसिद्धिम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: योगसिद्धि (प्रातिपदिक; योग + सिद्धि)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; ‘योगस्य सिद्धिः’

• लभे: I obtain / one obtains
• लभे: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: लभ् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (वर्तमान), आत्मनेपद, उत्तमपुरुष, एकवचन; (पाठान्तर/प्रयोगः—अर्थतः ‘लभेत्’ इति विधिलिङ् अपेक्षितः)

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय

• स्नानमात्रेण: by mere bathing
• स्नानमात्रेण: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्नानमात्र (प्रातिपदिक; स्नान + मात्र)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (करण), एकवचन

• भावतः: truly; with sincere intent
• भावतः: Avyaya (Adverbial/अव्यय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: भावतः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb: ‘in truth/with devotion/according to intention’); तसिल्-प्रत्ययान्त-भावे प्रयोगः

Speaker

Skanda (deduced: Kāśīkhaṇḍa commonly Skanda → Agastya)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Dattātreya-tīrtha

Type: ghat

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A quiet ghat shaded by trees; a yogic pilgrim bathes and then sits in meditation; Dattātreya appears as a serene guru figure (often iconographically with multiple attributes), radiating purity that seems to cleanse the three worlds symbolized by three luminous spheres.

Characters & Entities

• Dattātreya
• Datta-tīrtha
• Trailokya (three worlds)
• Yoga-siddhi
• Kāśī (Varanasi)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Inner disposition (bhāva) is central: faith joined to tīrtha-practice becomes a catalyst for purification and yogic maturity.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Dattātreya-tīrtha (Datta-tīrtha) in Kāśī, praised as ‘purifier of the three worlds’.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Snāna-mātra—bathing alone, explicitly to be done with bhāva (sincere devotional intent).