Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 18
द्वादशमासेषु अष्टमी-व्रत-कथनम्
Account of the Aṣṭamī Vow Across the Twelve Months
नमस्कारं ततः कुर्यात्प्रदक्षिणसमन्वितम् । एवं दशदिनं कुर्याद्व्रतानामुत्तमं व्रतम् ॥ १८ ॥
namaskāraṃ tataḥ kuryātpradakṣiṇasamanvitam | evaṃ daśadinaṃ kuryādvratānāmuttamaṃ vratam || 18 ||
Dann soll man die ehrfürchtige Niederwerfung (namaskāra) vollziehen, verbunden mit der rituellen Umrundung (pradakṣiṇa). So soll man es zehn Tage lang üben—dies ist das höchste unter allen Gelübden.
Narada (teaching in a vrata-vidhi context; dialogue tradition with Sanatkumara lineage implied)
Vrata: none
Primary Rasa: bhakti
Secondary Rasa: shanta
FAQs
It elevates humble surrender (namaskāra) and reverential worship (pradakṣiṇā) as the core inner attitude of a vow, declaring such disciplined devotion—kept for ten days—as exceptionally meritorious.
Bhakti is expressed through embodied reverence: bowing and circumambulating the deity or sacred focus daily, sustained with steadiness over a fixed period, showing loving commitment rather than one-time ritualism.
Ritual procedure (kalpa-style practice) is implied: pradakṣiṇā as a prescribed upacāra and the rule of a fixed observance-period (daśa-dina), emphasizing correct sequence and consistency in vrata performance.