Markandeya Purana — Adhyaya 43, Shloka 31
Adhyaya 43 — Portents of Death (Ariṣṭa-lakṣaṇas) and the Yogin’s Response; Alarka Renounces Kingship
स्वप्नेऽग्निं प्रविशेद्यस्तु न च निष्क्रमते पुनः ।
जलप्रवेशादपि वा तदन्तं तस्य जीवितम् ॥
svapne 'gniṃ praviśed yas tu na ca niṣkramate punaḥ / jalapraveśād api vā tadantaṃ tasya jīvitam
If in a dream one enters fire and does not come out again—or likewise enters water—then that marks the end of his life.
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FAQs
Fire and water—purifying yet dangerous—become symbols of irreversible passage. The teaching is to treat repeated, vivid omens as prompts for repentance, charity, and completion of duties.
Ancillary instruction on human life-signs; outside the five principal Purāṇic topics.
Entering fire/water without return suggests absorption into elemental forces—an image for the dissolution of bodily constituents (bhūta-s) and the jīva’s movement beyond waking continuity.