Agni Purana — Dharma-shastra, Shloka 4
Chapter 154: विवाहः
Vivāha — Marriage
अपत्यविक्रयासक्ते निष्कृतिर् न विधीयते कन्यादानं शचीयोगो विवाहो ऽथ चतुर्थिका
apatyavikrayāsakte niṣkṛtir na vidhīyate kanyādānaṃ śacīyogo vivāho 'tha caturthikā
Für den, der dem Verkauf von Nachkommenschaft verfallen ist, wird keine Sühne (niṣkṛti) festgesetzt. (Nun werden dargelegt) das kanyā-dāna (die Hingabe der Jungfrau), der Śacī-yoga, der rechte Ehritus und danach die Observanz namens „caturthikā“.
Lord Agni (in discourse to Vasiṣṭha, the default narration frame of the Agni Purana)
Vidya Category: {"primary_vidya":"Dharmashastra","secondary_vidya":"Vrata","practical_application":"Ethical-legal boundary: condemns commodification of progeny; then enumerates marriage-related rites/observances (kanyādāna, śacī-yoga, vivāha proper, caturthikā) for household ritual practice.","sutra_style":true}
Encyclopedic Reference: {"reference_type":"List","entry_title":"Prohibition of offspring-sale and sequence of vivāha observances","lookup_keywords":["apatya-vikraya","kanyādāna","śacī-yoga","caturthikā","vivāha rites"],"quick_summary":"Declares no expiation for addiction to selling offspring (a grave social sin) and then lists key marriage rites/observances to be performed in order, anchoring gṛhastha practice."}
Concept: Certain acts (commodifying offspring) are treated as severely adharmic; vivāha is structured through prescribed saṃskāras and vrata-like observances.
Application: Householders follow the enumerated rites; communities treat child-selling as a non-trivializable transgression (not ‘fixed’ by minor prāyaścitta).
Khanda Section: Dharma-shastra / Vivaha-vidhi (Marriage law and rites)
Primary Rasa: dharmavira
Secondary Rasa: bibhatsa
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A didactic contrast: a condemned act of selling a child (shown as a moral warning), followed by a proper wedding sequence—kanyādāna, śacī-yoga, and caturthikā observance in the bridal chamber context.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural narrative: first a cautionary scene with elders stopping a transaction involving a child, expressive moral tone; second a sanctified vivāha with kanyādāna before fire, then a symbolic śacī-yoga/caturthikā domestic rite, traditional flat composition","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore, emphasis on auspicious wedding rites with gold ornaments, sacred fire, priests; the warning scene minimized as a side vignette with subdued colors, main focus on dharmic ritual splendor","mysore_prompt":"Mysore style, instructional storyboard of rites: labeled steps—kanyādāna, ritual joining, then caturthikā observance; gentle palette and precise ritual objects (kalaśa, agni-kuṇḍa, maṅgala-sūtra-like ornamentation as regional proxy)","mughal_miniature_prompt":"Mughal miniature, courtly wedding pavilion with detailed ritual paraphernalia; marginal vignette showing a prohibited transaction being halted by authorities, fine architectural and textile detail"}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"instructional","suggested_raga":"Todi","pace":"medium","voice_tone":"instructional"}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: vivāho 'tha → vivāhaḥ atha (visarga before vowel with avagraha).
Related Themes: Agni Purana 154 (Vivāha-vidhi); Agni Purana vrata-related chapters (for observance framing)
FAQs
It states a prāyaścitta rule (no expiation for selling one’s offspring) and signals the upcoming technical treatment of marriage rites: kanyā-dāna, a named rite called Śacī-yoga, the vivāha procedure, and the caturthikā observance.
It exemplifies the text’s dharma-shastra layer—codifying social-legal prohibitions and then cataloging household rituals (marriage sub-rites), showing how the Agni Purana ranges beyond mythology into applied law and samskāra practice.
Selling offspring is treated as a grievous, socially destructive act with no stated ritual atonement here, underscoring severe karmic consequence; by contrast, properly performed marriage rites are framed as dharmic household duties that sustain social and spiritual order.