Agni Purana — Agneya-vidya, Shloka 12
Chapter 19 — कश्यपवंशवर्णनम्
Description of Kaśyapa’s Lineage
स्वर्भानोस्तु प्रभा कन्या पुलोम्नस्तु शची स्मृता उपदानवी हयशिरा शर्मिष्ठा वार्षपर्वणी
svarbhānostu prabhā kanyā pulomnastu śacī smṛtā upadānavī hayaśirā śarmiṣṭhā vārṣaparvaṇī
Prabhā is said to be the daughter of Svarbhānu; Śacī is remembered as (the daughter) of Puloman; and the names Upadānavī, Hayaśirā, Śarmiṣṭhā, and Vārṣaparvaṇī are also mentioned.
Lord Agni (narrating puranic lists to Vasiṣṭha)
Vidya Category: {"primary_vidya":"Samanya","secondary_vidya":"Cosmology","practical_application":"Puranic onomastics and lineage-recall for ritual storytelling, vrata-kathā narration, and identification of mythic figures across texts.","sutra_style":true}
Encyclopedic Reference: {"reference_type":"List","entry_title":"Svarbhānu–Puloman Line: Prabhā, Śacī and allied names","lookup_keywords":["Svarbhānu","Prabhā","Puloman","Śacī","Śarmiṣṭhā"],"quick_summary":"Gives a compact list of named women associated with Asura/Daitya lineages, useful as a lookup for genealogical mapping and cross-text identification (e.g., Śacī as Indra’s consort in later narrative contexts)."}
Khanda Section: Genealogies and Lists (Daitya-Danava–Apsaras/Asura lineages; Puranic onomastics)
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: shanta
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A genealogical tableau: sages reciting names while celestial and asuric women (Prabhā, Śacī, Śarmiṣṭhā, etc.) are shown as labeled figures in a lineage scroll.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala temple mural style, warm earthy palette, a seated rishi with palm-leaf manuscript, behind him a stylized lineage tree with female figures labeled Prabhā and Śacī, flat decorative clouds, traditional ornaments.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting, central rishi narrator with gold-leaf halo, side panels showing Prabhā and Śacī in jeweled attire, embossed gold borders, inscription-like name tags.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore painting, clean linework, manuscript-reading scene with a genealogical chart, delicate shading, minimal background, emphasis on clarity of named figures.","mughal_miniature_prompt":"Mughal miniature, courtly manuscript illustration: a scholar recites from a codex while attendants point to a painted genealogy scroll with small portraits of Prabhā, Śacī, Śarmiṣṭhā; fine floral margins."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"instructional","suggested_raga":"Shankarabharanam","pace":"medium","voice_tone":"instructional"}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: स्वर्भानोस्तु = स्वर्भानोः + तु; पुलोम्नस्तु = पुलोम्नः + तु
Related Themes: Agni Purana 19 (vaṃśa/onomastics lists)
FAQs
No ritual procedure is taught here; the verse preserves puranic onomastic knowledge—names and familial affiliations used for genealogy, narration, and identification in wider mythic accounts.
By cataloguing proper names and relationships, it functions like a reference index for puranic lore, enabling cross-linking of characters across myths—one of the Agni Purana’s hallmark encyclopedic features.
Such lineage-recitation supports smṛti (remembered tradition) and śravaṇa (hearing) of puranic history; it is traditionally regarded as meritorious because it preserves sacred narrative continuity and dharmic memory.