Markandeya Purana — Adhyaya 51, Shloka 20

Adhyaya 51 — Yaksha Injunctions: Graha-Children and Female Spirits Causing Domestic and Ritual Disruptions

Sanskrit

गोमूत्रसर्षपस्त्राणैस्तदृक्षग्रहपूजनैः ।

पुनश्च धर्मोपनिषत्करणैः शास्त्रदर्शनैः ॥

Transliteration

gomūtra-sarṣapa-strāṇais tad-ṛkṣa-graha-pūjanaiḥ | punaś ca dharmopaniṣat-karaṇaiḥ śāstra-darśanaiḥ ||

Translation

গোমূত্র ও সরিষা দ্বারা রক্ষা-বিধিতে, সংশ্লিষ্ট নক্ষত্র ও গ্রহের পূজায়, এবং আবার ‘ধর্মের গুহ্যসার’ ধারণকারী প্রয়োগে ও শাস্ত্র-পরামর্শে (সেই দোষ/পীড়া) প্রশমিত হয়।

Word by Word

• go-mūtra-sarṣapa-strāṇaiḥ: by protections/remedies (with) cow-urine, mustard, etc.
• go-mūtra-sarṣapa-strāṇaiḥ: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: go (प्रातिपदिक) + mūtra (प्रातिपदिक) + sarṣapa (प्रातिपदिक) + strāṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Plural (बहुवचन); समाहार-द्वन्द्व: 'gomūtraṃ ca sarṣapāḥ ca strāṇāni ca' (protective measures using cow-urine, mustard, protections)

• tad-ṛkṣa-graha-pūjanaiḥ: by worship of those stars/planets
• tad-ṛkṣa-graha-pūjanaiḥ: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + ṛkṣa (प्रातिपदिक) + graha (प्रातिपदिक) + pūjana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Plural (बहुवचन); बहुपद-तत्पुरुष: 'tadṛkṣāṇāṃ grahāṇāṃ pūjanaiḥ' (worship of those constellations/planets)

• punaḥ: again/further
• punaḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: punaḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: Adverb (पुनरावृत्तिवाचक अव्यय)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Conjunction particle (समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय)

• dharma-upaniṣat-karaṇaiḥ: by rites/performances of dharma-upaniṣads
• dharma-upaniṣat-karaṇaiḥ: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dharma (प्रातिपदिक) + upaniṣad (प्रातिपदिक) + karaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Plural (बहुवचन); तत्पुरुष: 'dharmopaniṣadaḥ karaṇaiḥ' (performances/rites taught in dharma-upaniṣads)

• śāstra-darśanaiḥ: by consulting the scriptures
• śāstra-darśanaiḥ: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śāstra (प्रातिपदिक) + darśana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Plural (बहुवचन); तत्पुरुष: 'śāstrasya darśanam' (consultation/seeing of scriptures)

Speakers

• Not explicit; procedural list of remedies.

Verse Rasa

{ "primaryRasa": "shanta", "secondaryRasa": "bhakti", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

Primary Deities

• Grahas (planetary deities)
• Nakṣatra/Ṛkṣa deities (implicit)

Key Themes

• Śānti rites
• Graha worship
• Ritual purification
• Śāstra authority

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

Purāṇic dharma joins devotion, ritual hygiene, and textual discernment: remedies are not merely magical but are framed as disciplined, śāstra-informed actions aligned with cosmic order (grahas/ṛkṣas).

How does this fit the Pancalakṣaṇa (5 characteristics)?

Ancillary ritual-dharma material.

What is the esoteric significance?

Graha/ṛkṣa worship represents harmonizing the microcosm (individual fate/psyche) with macrocosmic rhythms. ‘Śāstra-darśana’ implies that right knowledge itself is protective (jñāna as rakṣā).