Shloka 68
Puruṣottama-kṣetra Māhātmya: Śveta-Mādhava & Matsya-Mādhava; Mārkaṇḍeya-tīrtha Mārjana and Bath Liturgy
भूम्यां चैव लयं यांति भूमौ दद्यात्ततो जलम् । आस्तीर्य च कुशान्साग्रानावाह्य स्वस्वमन्त्रतः । प्राचीनाग्रेषु वै देवान्याम्याग्रेषु तथा पितॄन् ॥ ६८ ॥
bhūmyāṃ caiva layaṃ yāṃti bhūmau dadyāttato jalam | āstīrya ca kuśānsāgrānāvāhya svasvamantrataḥ | prācīnāgreṣu vai devānyāmyāgreṣu tathā pitṝn || 68 ||
Since all things ultimately dissolve back into the earth, one should first offer water upon the ground. Then, having spread kuśa grass with its tips oriented as prescribed, one should invoke—each with their own mantras—the Devas at the east-pointing tips and likewise the Pitṛs at the south-pointing tips.
Narada (in dialogue tradition with the Sanatkumara brothers; ritual instruction section)
Vrata: none
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: bhakti
FAQs
It frames ritual action within a cosmological truth—everything returns to earth—and then prescribes a disciplined method of inviting higher and ancestral powers through water-offering, kuśa placement, and mantra-based āvāhana.
While primarily ritual (karma-kāṇḍa) in tone, it supports bhakti by teaching reverent, orderly worship—invoking Devas and honoring Pitṛs with mantras and proper orientation, cultivating humility and sacred attention.
Kalpa (ritual procedure) is central: the directional placement of kuśa (east/south), sequencing of offerings (water first), and mantra-specific invocation (svasva-mantra) reflect applied Vedic ritual science.