Skanda Purana — Mahesvara Khanda, Shloka 35

Devanagari script

अस्मत्संपर्कसंबंधात्स्नानशौचाशनादिभिः । पुनंति प्राणिनः सर्वे पापेन परिवेष्टिताः

Transliteration

asmatsaṃparkasaṃbaṃdhātsnānaśaucāśanādibhiḥ | punaṃti prāṇinaḥ sarve pāpena pariveṣṭitāḥ

Translation

“ด้วยการสัมผัสและความเกี่ยวข้องกับเรา—ด้วยการอาบน้ำ ชำระกาย ดื่มน้ำ และอื่นๆ—สรรพสัตว์ทั้งปวง แม้ถูกบาปห่อหุ้ม ก็ย่อมบริสุทธิ์ได้”

Word by Word

• asmat-saṃparka-saṃbandhāt: from association with us
• asmat-saṃparka-saṃbandhāt: Apādāna (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmat + saṃparka + saṃbandha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/अपादान), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष-श्रृंखला: ‘asmākam saṃparka-saṃbandhāt’ = ‘from connection/association with us’

• snāna-śauca-aśana-ādibhiḥ: by bathing, cleansing, eating, etc.
• snāna-śauca-aśana-ādibhiḥ: Karaṇa (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: snāna + śauca + aśana + ādi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (समाहार-द्वन्द्व), तृतीया (3rd/करण), बहुवचन; ‘by bathing, purification, eating, etc.’

• punanti: purify
• punanti: Kriyā (Main action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √pū (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present/वर्तमान), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), बहुवचन; परस्मैपद; ‘they purify’

• prāṇinaḥ: living beings
• prāṇinaḥ: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prāṇin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), बहुवचन; ‘living beings’

• sarve: all
• sarve: Karma (Qualifier/कर्मविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), बहुवचन; विशेषणम् ‘all’ (qualifying prāṇinaḥ)

• pāpena: by sin
• pāpena: Karaṇa (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pāpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), एकवचन; ‘by/with sin’

• pariveṣṭitāḥ: enveloped, surrounded
• pariveṣṭitāḥ: Karta (Qualifier of object in sense/कर्तृविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pari-√veṣṭ (धातु)
• Form: क्त (past passive participle): पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; ‘enveloped/surrounded’ (qualifying prāṇinaḥ)

Speaker

The Waters (Āpaḥ), continuing their statement to the Purodhas

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Kedāra tīrtha-jala (local sacred waters)

Type: kshetra

Visual Art Cues

Scene: Waters speak as compassionate deities, declaring that by bathing, cleansing, drinking, and related contact, all beings—though wrapped in sin—are purified; the scene can show pilgrims at a sacred stream with divine presence shimmering in the water.

Characters & Entities

• Āpaḥ (Waters)
• Prāṇinaḥ (living beings)
• Snāna
• Śauca
• Pāpa

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sacred water is a divine medium of renewal: by rightful use (bathing, cleansing, drinking), beings can move from sin-burdened life toward purity and dharmic living.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

While not naming a single tīrtha, the verse supports the broader tīrtha-mahātmya principle central to Kedāra-khaṇḍa: waters associated with sacred places purify.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Snāna (ritual bathing) and śauca (cleansing practices), along with water-use in consumption, are upheld as purifying acts.