Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 36

Devanagari script

निमज्जंति ततः कुण्डे तस्मिन्पातकनाशने । भवंति पापनिर्मुक्ता रुद्रशीर्षावलोकनात्

Transliteration

nimajjaṃti tataḥ kuṇḍe tasminpātakanāśane | bhavaṃti pāpanirmuktā rudraśīrṣāvalokanāt

Translation

അതിനുശേഷം അവർ പാതകനാശകമായ ആ കുണ്ഡത്തിൽ മുങ്ങി സ്നാനം ചെയ്യുന്നു; ‘രുദ്രശീർഷ’ ദർശനത്താൽ അവർ പാപമുക്തരാകുന്നു।

Word by Word

• निमज्जन्ति: they immerse/bathe
• निमज्जन्ति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: नि + मज्ज् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकारः (परस्मैपदम्), प्रथम-पुरुषः, बहुवचनम्; धातुः मज्ज् (to sink/immerse) (Present, 3rd pl)

• ततः: then
• ततः: Adhikaraṇa (Temporal/काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; तसिल्-प्रत्ययान्त, क्रम/कारण/अपादानार्थ (then/from there)

• कुण्डे: in the pond
• कुण्डे: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कुण्ड (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, सप्तमी-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम् (Locative singular)

• तस्मिन्: in that
• तस्मिन्: Adhikaraṇa (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे/पुंलिङ्गे, सप्तमी-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम् (Locative singular)

• पातकनाशने: in the sin-destroying (pond)
• पातकनाशने: Adhikaraṇa (Location qualifier/अधिकरण-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पातकनाशन (प्रातिपदिक; पातक + नाशन)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, सप्तमी-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्; तत्पुरुषः (पातकस्य नाशनम्) विशेषणम् (Locative singular)

• भवन्ति: they become
• भवन्ति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकारः (परस्मैपदम्), प्रथम-पुरुषः, बहुवचनम्; धातुः भू (to become) (Present, 3rd pl)

• पापनिर्मुक्ताः: freed from sin
• पापनिर्मुक्ताः: Karta (Subject complement/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पाप + निर्मुक्त (प्रातिपदिक; निर् + मुच् (धातु) + क्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्गे, प्रथमा-विभक्तिः, बहुवचनम्; तत्पुरुषः (पापात् निर्मुक्तः) भूतकृदन्तः (क्त) (Nominative plural)

• रुद्रशीर्षावलोकनात्: from seeing Rudraśīrṣa
• रुद्रशीर्षावलोकनात्: Hetu (Cause/हेतु)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रुद्रशीर्ष + अवलोकन (प्रातिपदिक; अव + लोक् (धातु) + ल्युट्)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गे, पञ्चमी-विभक्तिः, एकवचनम्; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (रुद्रशीर्षस्य अवलोकनम्) (Ablative singular)

Speaker

Sūta (Lomaharṣaṇa) narrating (deduced)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Rudraśīrṣa Kuṇḍa (pātaka-nāśana)

Type: kund

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Devotees descending stone steps into a sacred pond, water shimmering; after immersion they stand with wet garments, hands folded, gazing at the Rudraśīrṣa shrine/linga.

Characters & Entities

• Rudraśīrṣa
• Kuṇḍa

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Snāna (ritual immersion) and darśana (sacred seeing) at a tīrtha are presented as potent means of purification.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The Rudraśīrṣa kuṇḍa (sacred tank) and Rudraśīrṣa darśana within Nāgarakhaṇḍa’s Tīrthamāhātmya.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Immersion/bathing in the kuṇḍa and beholding Rudraśīrṣa (darśana) are explicitly mentioned.