Vamana Purana — Vishnu's Sleep (Ashunya-Shayana), Shloka 53
The Caturmasya Observances and the Rite of Vishnu’s Sleep (Aśūnya-Śayana) and Shiva’s Monthly Vows
धूपं सर्जाज्ययुक्तं च नैवेद्यं सफलं घृतम् नामजप्यमपीशस्य कालघ्नेति विपश्चिता
dhūpaṃ sarjājyayuktaṃ ca naivedyaṃ saphalaṃ ghṛtam nāmajapyamapīśasya kālaghneti vipaścitā
One should offer incense mixed with sarja resin and ghee (ghṛta), and a naivedya consisting of ghee together with fruits. Even the japa, the repetition of the Lord Īśa’s names—so the wise declare—becomes “kālaghna”, a destroyer of Kāla, Time (death and inauspicious fate).
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FAQs
Devotion is expressed through both external offerings (incense, food) and internal practice (name-recitation). The verse elevates nāma-japa as spiritually potent—capable of overcoming fear of death and the anxieties bound to ‘kāla’ (time).
This material aligns with ancillary Purāṇic instruction (ācāra/dharma, vrata-vidhi) rather than the five classical markers like sarga/pratisarga. In database terms it is best indexed under ‘dharma/ritual prescriptions’ embedded within the narrative frame.
‘Kālaghna’ implies that devotion transcends temporality: offerings symbolize surrender of sensory enjoyments, while nāma-japa symbolizes continuous remembrance, portrayed as the true antidote to mortality.