Skanda Purana — Prabhasa Khanda, Shloka 37

Devanagari script

नानुलिप्ते धरापृष्ठे यत्र भुंजन्ति मानवाः । भ्रष्टशौचा द्विजश्रेष्ठ तदस्माकं तु भोजनम्

Transliteration

nānulipte dharāpṛṣṭhe yatra bhuṃjanti mānavāḥ | bhraṣṭaśaucā dvijaśreṣṭha tadasmākaṃ tu bhojanam

Translation

ณ ที่ซึ่งมนุษย์กินบนพื้นดินที่มิได้ชโลมและชำระให้บริสุทธิ์ ทั้งความสะอาดของตนก็เสื่อมเสีย—โอ้พราหมณ์ผู้ประเสริฐ—อาหารนั้นแลเป็นภักษาของเรา (เหล่าเปรต)

Word by Word

• न: not
• न: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-अव्यय

• अनुलिप्ते: on (a place) not smeared/plastered
• अनुलिप्ते: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अनु + लिप् (धातु) + अनुलिप्त (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त; नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (7th/Locative), एकवचन; ‘अनुलिप्ते (पृष्ठे)’ = on an un-smeared surface

• धरापृष्ठे: on the surface of the ground
• धरापृष्ठे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धरा + पृष्ठ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (7th/Locative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (धरायाः पृष्ठम्)

• यत्र: where
• यत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय (where)

• भुञ्जन्ति: eat
• भुञ्जन्ति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भुज् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथम-पुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन; परस्मैपद

• मानवाः: humans
• मानवाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मानव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

• भ्रष्टशौचाः: those whose purity is lost/impure
• भ्रष्टशौचाः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: भ्रष्ट + शौच (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; बहुव्रीहिः (येषां शौचं भ्रष्टं ते)

• द्विजश्रेष्ठ: O best of the twice-born
• द्विजश्रेष्ठ: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्विज + श्रेष्ठ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन-प्रथमा (Vocative), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (द्विजानां श्रेष्ठः)

• तत्: that
• तत्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• अस्माकम्: of us/our
• अस्माकम्: Sambandha (Possessor/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मद् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-विभक्ति (6th/Genitive), बहुवचन; प्रथम-पुरुष-सर्वनाम

• तु: indeed/but
• तु: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: विरोध/अन्वयार्थक-अव्यय

• भोजनम्: food/meal
• भोजनम्: Karta (Predicate nominal/कर्ता-समाना)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भोजन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

Speaker

Pretas

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Prabhāsa-kṣetra

Type: kshetra

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: Dvija-śreṣṭha (addressed brāhmaṇa interlocutor)

Visual Art Cues

Scene: A household meal/śrāddha setting where the ground is left unsmeared and impure; shadowy pretas hover near the food while a brāhmaṇa elder admonishes the host.

Characters & Entities

• Gautama (context)
• Pretas
• Humans (mānavāḥ)

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Purity (śauca) safeguards human dignity; neglect of cleanliness aligns one with lower states of existence and subtle impurity.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

The instruction occurs within Prabhāsakṣetra Māhātmya, reinforcing tīrtha culture where purity and right conduct are emphasized.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Śauca in dining: eat in a clean, properly prepared place (traditionally plastered/smeared for purity), maintaining personal cleanliness.