Agni Purana — Veda-vidhana & Vamsha, Shloka 1
Nīrājana-vidhiḥ
Procedure of Nīrājana / Auspicious Lamp-Waving and Royal Propitiation
इत्य् आग्नेये महापुराणे महेश्वरस्नानलक्षकोटिहोमादयो नाम षट्षष्ट्यधिकद्विशततमो ऽध्यायः अथ सप्तषष्ट्यधिकद्विशततमो ऽध्यायः नीराजनविधिः पुष्कर उवाच कर्म सांवत्सरं राज्ञां जन्मर्क्षे पूजयेच्च तं मासि मासि च संक्रान्तौ सूर्यसोमादिदेवताः
ity āgneye mahāpurāṇe maheśvarasnānalakṣakoṭihomādayo nāma ṣaṭṣaṣṭyadhikadviśatatamo 'dhyāyaḥ atha saptaṣaṣṭyadhikadviśatatamo 'dhyāyaḥ nīrājanavidhiḥ puṣkara uvāca karma sāṃvatsaraṃ rājñāṃ janmarkṣe pūjayecca taṃ māsi māsi ca saṃkrāntau sūryasomādidevatāḥ
هكذا، في «أغني مهابورانا» ينتهي الفصل السادس والستون بعد المئتين المعنون: «اغتسال ماهيشڤارا، وقرابين النار بمقدار لاك وكروْر، وما يتصل بها من شعائر». ويبدأ الآن الفصل السابع والستون بعد المئتين: «طريقة النِّيراجَنا (تحريك المصباح المبارك)». قال بوشكرا: «ينبغي للملوك أن يؤدّوا الشعيرة السنوية؛ وفي يوم نجم الميلاد (النَّكشَترا) يُعبد ذلك (الطقس/الإله). وكذلك، شهرًا بعد شهر، عند كل سَنكْرانتي (دخول الشمس في البرج)، تُعبد الآلهة ابتداءً بسوريا وسوما»۔
Puṣkara
Vidya Category: {"primary_vidya":"Vrata","secondary_vidya":"Jyotisha","practical_application":"Royal and household ritual calendar-setting: annual observance, janma-nakshatra worship, and monthly saṅkrānti devatā-pūjā (Sūrya, Soma, etc.) to maintain auspiciousness and polity stability.","sutra_style":true}
Encyclopedic Reference: {"reference_type":"Procedure","entry_title":"Rājñāṃ Sāṃvatsara-karma & Saṅkrānti Devatā-pūjā","lookup_keywords":["sāṃvatsara-karma","janma-nakṣatra-pūjā","saṅkrānti","sūrya-pūjā","soma-pūjā"],"quick_summary":"Fix an annual royal rite, repeat worship on one’s birth-asterism, and perform monthly saṅkrānti worship of solar-lunar deities for ongoing auspicious order."}
Concept: Kāla-niyama (discipline by sacred time) as a support for rājadharma and prosperity.
Application: Maintain a state/household pañcāṅga-based ritual schedule; align worship with saṅkrānti and janma-nakṣatra to structure vows, donations, and temple services.
Khanda Section: Puja-vidhi (Ritual Worship Procedures) / Rajadharma (Royal Annual Observances)
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A king with purohita before a fire-altar and lamp, consulting a pañcāṅga; Sūrya and Soma represented above as presiding deities of saṅkrānti; attendants preparing monthly offerings.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala temple mural style, flat warm palette, king and priest performing saṅkrānti pūjā with oil lamp and kalasha, Sūrya with halo and Soma with crescent above, ornate borders, traditional mural linework","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting, central royal figure with purohita, gold-leaf halos for Sūrya and Soma, rich textiles, lamp-waving motif, temple arch frame, embossed ornaments","mysore_prompt":"Mysore painting, instructional composition showing pañcāṅga, saṅkrānti marker, offerings arranged in neat rows, subtle shading, fine gesso detailing","mughal_miniature_prompt":"Mughal miniature, courtly ritual scene with astrologer-priest indicating saṅkrānti on a manuscript, king seated, attendants with trays, sun and moon emblems in sky, detailed architecture and textiles"}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"instructional","suggested_raga":"Bhairav","pace":"medium","voice_tone":"instructional"}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: ity āgneye → iti āgneye; 'dviśatatamo 'dhyāyaḥ' → dviśatatamaḥ adhyāyaḥ; pūjayecca → pūjayet ca; śakrārthaṃ etc not in this verse; sūryasomādidevatāḥ resolved as sūrya-soma-ādi-devatāḥ.
Related Themes: Agni Purana Puja-vidhi sections on saṅkrānti/vrata-kalpa; Agni Purana chapters on nīrājana and utsava-vidhi (immediately following)
FAQs
It introduces the Nīrājana-vidhi context and prescribes calendrical worship: an annual royal observance, worship on one’s birth-nakṣatra, and monthly saṅkrānti worship of deities such as Sūrya and Soma.
It shows the text functioning as a ritual handbook tied to Jyotiṣa (timekeeping): it links kingship duties, annual cycles, birth-asterism observances, and solar ingresses—demonstrating the Purāṇa’s practical coverage of governance and liturgy.
Aligning worship with birth-star and saṅkrānti timings is presented as an auspicious discipline that sustains royal welfare and personal merit by harmonizing devotion with sacred calendrical transitions.