Markandeya Purana — Adhyaya 50, Shloka 89
Adhyaya 50 — Mind-Born Progeny, Svayambhuva Manu’s Lineage, and Brahmā’s Ordinance to Duḥsaha (Alakṣmī’s Retinue)
स्थालीपिधानॆ यत्राग्निर्दत्तो दर्वोफलेन वा ।
गृहे तत्र दुरिष्टानामशेषाणां समाश्रयः ॥
sthālīpidhāne yatrāgnir datto darvophalena vā /
gṛhe tatra duriṣṭānām aśeṣāṇāṃ samāśrayaḥ
In a house where fire is kindled by using a pot-lid as an improvised hearth, or by burning the handle of a ladle as fuel, that house becomes a resort of every kind of ill-omen and inauspicious force.
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FAQs
Domestic order (proper handling of fire and cooking) is treated as an outward sign of inner discipline. Negligent or makeshift practices symbolize disorder, inviting ‘duriṣṭa’—misfortune and morally corrosive influences.
Primarily Dharma/Ācāra instruction (not one of the five core purāṇic lakṣaṇas). It functions as ancillary didactic material supporting right conduct within social life.
Agni is the mouth of the gods and the carrier of offerings; to treat fire casually is to weaken the sacrificial principle in daily life. The ‘abode of duriṣṭa’ expresses a metaphysical consequence of ritual negligence.