Shloka 10
Matsya Purana — The Nakṣatra-Puruṣa Vrata: Worship of Viṣṇu’s Cosmic Body through the Lunar M...
पूर्वोत्तराषाढयुगे तथोरू नमः शिवायेत्यभिपूजनीयौ पूर्वोत्तराफल्गुनियुग्मके च मेढ्रं नमः पञ्चशराय पूज्यम् //
pūrvottarāṣāḍhayuge tathorū namaḥ śivāyetyabhipūjanīyau pūrvottarāphalguniyugmake ca meḍhraṃ namaḥ pañcaśarāya pūjyam //
At the pair (junction) of Pūrvāṣāḍhā and Uttarāṣāḍhā, the two thighs are to be specially worshipped with the mantra “namaḥ śivāya”. And at the pair of Pūrvaphalgunī and Uttaraphalgunī, the generative organ is to be worshipped with the salutation “namaḥ pañcaśarāya” (obeisance to the Five-arrowed one, Kāma).
FAQs
This verse does not describe Pralaya; it teaches a ritual mapping of nakṣatra-pairs to specific body parts for worship (nyāsa-style practice).
It supports the householder’s (and ruler’s) dharmic life by prescribing disciplined mantra-based worship—channeling bodily faculties under sacred observance through regulated ritual practice.
Ritually, it is a nyāsa-like instruction: specific nakṣatra pairs correspond to limbs, and the practitioner worships those parts with designated mantras (here, “namaḥ śivāya” for the thighs and “namaḥ pañcaśarāya” for the generative organ).