Skanda Purana — Nagara Khanda, Shloka 43

Devanagari script

शुद्धोऽयं ब्राह्मणः साक्षाद्विष्णुपद्याः समागमात् । स्नानादाचमनादेव तस्माद्यातु गृहं निजम्

Transliteration

śuddho'yaṃ brāhmaṇaḥ sākṣādviṣṇupadyāḥ samāgamāt | snānādācamanādeva tasmādyātu gṛhaṃ nijam

Translation

“Vị Bà-la-môn này được thanh tịnh ngay thật, do tiếp xúc với Viṣṇupadī. Chỉ nhờ tắm gội và làm nghi thức ācamana mà thôi—vì thế nay hãy để ông trở về nhà mình.”

Word by Word

• śuddhaḥ: purified
• śuddhaḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śuddha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; विशेषण

• ayam: this (man)
• ayam: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• brāhmaṇaḥ: Brahmin
• brāhmaṇaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brāhmaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• sākṣāt: directly, indeed
• sākṣāt: Sambandha (Modifier/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sākṣāt (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (क्रियाविशेषण) = directly, manifestly

• viṣṇupadyāḥ: of Viṣṇupadī (Gaṅgā)
• viṣṇupadyāḥ: Apadana (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viṣṇupadī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, एकवचन; (गङ्गा/विष्णुपदी)

• samāgamāt: from contact/meeting
• samāgamāt: Hetu (Cause/हेतु)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sam-ā√gam (धातु) (कृदन्त/भाव)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/ablative), एकवचन; 'समागम' = meeting/coming together

• snānāt: from bathing
• snānāt: Hetu (Cause/हेतु)
• Type: Noun
• Root: snāna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी, एकवचन

• ācamanāt: from sipping (ritual)
• ācamanāt: Hetu (Cause/हेतु)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ācāmana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी, एकवचन

• eva: indeed, just
• eva: Sambandha (Emphasis/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (निश्चय/अवधारण) = emphatic particle

• tasmāt: therefore
• tasmāt: Hetu/Apadana (Therefore/Source)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी, एकवचन; 'therefore/from that'

• yātu: let him go
• yātu: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √yā (धातु)
• Form: लोट् (Imperative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद; आज्ञार्थे

• gṛham: home
• gṛham: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gṛha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• nijam: his own
• nijam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nija (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण

Speaker

Bhāratī (divine voice)

Tirtha Mahatmya

Tirtha: Viṣṇupadī

Type: ghat

Skanda Dialogue

Listener: The brāhmaṇa bather; indirectly the gathered brāhmaṇas

Visual Art Cues

Scene: From the sky, the unseen Bhāratī declares the brāhmaṇa purified; the bather stands waist-deep, hands cupped in ācamana gesture, water dripping, face calm with relief.

Characters & Entities

• Bhāratī
• Viṣṇupadī Gaṅgā
• Brāhmaṇa

FAQs

What is the primary spiritual lesson of this shloka?

Sacred waters, approached properly, can confer immediate ritual purity; dharma is fulfilled through simple, sincere observance.

Which specific holy site (Tirtha) is glorified here?

Viṣṇupadī Gaṅgā, whose mere ‘samāgama’ (contact) is proclaimed purifying.

What ritualistic prescription is mentioned?

Snāna (bathing) and ācamana (ritual sipping/rinsing) are explicitly stated as sufficient for purification here.