Agni Purana — Dharma-shastra, Shloka 16
Chapter 171 — प्रायश्चित्तानि
Prāyaścittāni / Expiations
पञ्चगव्यं समश्नीयाद्धविष्याशीत्यनन्तरं मासेन द्विर् नरः कृत्वा सर्वपापैः प्रमुच्यते
pañcagavyaṃ samaśnīyāddhaviṣyāśītyanantaraṃ māsena dvir naraḥ kṛtvā sarvapāpaiḥ pramucyate
One should consume pañcagavya, and thereafter subsist on haviṣya-food; a man who performs this twice within a month is released from all sins.
Lord Agni (in instruction to the sage Vasiṣṭha, as the primary narrator of Agni Purāṇa)
Vidya Category: {"primary_vidya":"Dharmashastra","secondary_vidya":"Vrata","practical_application":"Expiatory purification by ingesting pañcagavya followed by a haviṣya diet, repeated twice within a month for sin-removal.","sutra_style":true}
Encyclopedic Reference: {"reference_type":"Procedure","entry_title":"Pañcagavya-sevana with Haviṣya regimen (monthly twice) for sarvapāpa-śuddhi","lookup_keywords":["pancagavya","havishya","prayashchitta","shuddhi","sarvapapa"],"quick_summary":"Consume pañcagavya, then maintain a haviṣya diet; performing this sequence twice in a month is stated to free one from sins."}
Concept: Moral purification is supported by bodily discipline—regulated intake and restraint as instruments of inner correction.
Application: Pair confession/resolve with concrete regimen (dietary and ritual) to reinforce ethical reform.
Khanda Section: Prayashchitta & Shuddhi-vidhi (Expiation and Purificatory Observances)
Primary Rasa: shanta
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A penitent preparing and consuming pañcagavya, then taking simple haviṣya food, with a month-cycle indicated and the act repeated twice.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural, ritual courtyard, vessels containing pañcagavya components, devotee in white cloth sipping from a small cup, then eating simple haviṣya from a leaf-plate, serene purification mood.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore style, ornate brass vessels with gold accents, pañcagavya cup and ghee-lit lamp, devotee seated before a small altar, symbolic two marks for twice-in-a-month repetition.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore painting, clean instructional layout: labeled vessels for pañcagavya, then a bowl of haviṣya (ghee-rice), a lunar/month diagram showing two repetitions, fine detailing.","mughal_miniature_prompt":"Mughal miniature, detailed kitchen-ritual scene with attendants preparing simple offering-food, penitent consuming from delicate cups, calendar motif showing two observances within a month."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"instructional","suggested_raga":null,"pace":"medium","voice_tone":"instructional"}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: samaśnīyāt haviṣyāśī iti anantaram → samaśnīyāddhaviṣyāśītyanantaram; dvir naraḥ → dviḥ naraḥ.
Related Themes: Agni Purana 171 (kṛcchra and dietary prāyaścitta variants); Agni Purana 173 (sarvapāpa-prāyaścitta catalog)
FAQs
It prescribes a specific expiatory regimen: consuming pañcagavya followed by a period of haviṣya-based diet, to be performed twice within one month as a formal prayāścitta.
It exemplifies the Agni Purāṇa’s practical compendium-style coverage of dharma: not only theology and myth, but also operational rules for penance, purification, and regulated ritual diet.
The verse frames the practice as pāpa-kṣaya (destruction of karmic demerit): completing the regimen as stated is said to free one from “all sins,” i.e., to restore ritual and moral purity.