Shloka 161
Matsya Purana — Navagraha Sacrifice for Planetary Pacification and Prosperity
इति कथितमिदानीमुत्सवानन्दहेतोः सकलकलुषहारी देवयज्ञाभिषेकः परिपठति य इत्थं यः शृणोति प्रसङ्गाद् अभिभवति स शत्रूनायुरारोग्ययुक्तः //
iti kathitamidānīmutsavānandahetoḥ sakalakaluṣahārī devayajñābhiṣekaḥ paripaṭhati ya itthaṃ yaḥ śṛṇoti prasaṅgād abhibhavati sa śatrūnāyurārogyayuktaḥ //
Thus has now been described the Devayajña-abhiṣeka—the consecratory rite connected with divine worship—which is a cause of festive joy and a remover of all impurity. Whoever recites it in this manner, and whoever hears it even incidentally, overcomes enemies and becomes endowed with long life and health.
FAQs
This verse does not discuss pralaya directly; instead, it gives a phala-śruti for a ritual (devayajña-abhiṣeka), emphasizing purification and protection in worldly life rather than cosmic dissolution.
It supports the gṛhastha/royal duty of maintaining public and private worship through festivals and consecrations; by sponsoring or participating in such rites, one upholds dharma and is said to gain social stability—symbolized here as victory over enemies, longevity, and health.
The focus is ritual: abhiṣeka (consecratory bathing/anointing) as part of devayajña and utsava observance; it functions as a purificatory, merit-conferring conclusion (phala-śruti) to the described procedure, often associated with temple/icon consecration contexts.