Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 45
The Exposition of the Ṣaṣṭhī-vrata Observed Through the Twelve Months
स्नानदानादिकं चात्र सर्वमक्षय्यमुच्यते । पौषमासे शुक्लषष्ठ्यां देवो दिनपतिर्द्विज ॥ ४५ ॥
snānadānādikaṃ cātra sarvamakṣayyamucyate | pauṣamāse śuklaṣaṣṭhyāṃ devo dinapatirdvija || 45 ||
Hier werden alle Handlungen wie rituelles Bad, Almosengabe und dergleichen als von unerschöpflichem Verdienst bezeichnet. O Zweimalgeborener, am lichten sechsten Tag (Śukla-Ṣaṣṭhī) des Monats Pauṣa ist die Gottheit dieses Tages der Herr des Tages: die Sonne (Sūrya).
Sanatkumara
Vrata: none
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: bhakti
FAQs
It teaches that, in this specified sacred timing, common dharmic acts—snāna (bath), dāna (charity), and related rites—yield akṣaya puṇya, meaning their spiritual merit is considered enduring rather than quickly exhausted.
By identifying the presiding deity as Dinapati (Surya) on Pauṣa Śukla Ṣaṣṭhī, it channels devotion into a time-bound vrata: worship offered with faith, along with charity and purity practices, becomes a focused form of bhakti expressed through ritual discipline.
It highlights calendrical and ritual timing—month (Pauṣa), pakṣa (śukla), and tithi (ṣaṣṭhī)—which aligns with Vedāṅga Jyotiṣa-style computation used to select auspicious observance days for worship and merit-producing rites.