Agni Purana — Ayurveda, Shloka 14
Bala-graha-hara Bāla-tantram (बालग्रहहर बालतन्त्रम्) — Pediatric protection and graha-affliction management
वचागोमयगोमूत्रैः श्रीदण्डी चाष्टमे ग्रही दिशो निरीक्षणं जिह्वाचालनङ्कासरोदनं
vacāgomayagomūtraiḥ śrīdaṇḍī cāṣṭame grahī diśo nirīkṣaṇaṃ jihvācālanaṅkāsarodanaṃ
Avec la vacā (acore odorant), la bouse de vache et l’urine de vache—employées comme remèdes/agents; et, dans le huitième cas, le graha nommé Śrīdaṇḍin saisit l’enfant. Ses signes sont: regarder sans cesse vers les directions, des secousses/tremblements de la langue, et des pleurs avec un son d’étouffement ou d’étranglement.
Lord Agni (in discourse to sage Vasiṣṭha, as typical for Agni Purāṇa’s encyclopedic narration)
Vidya Category: {"primary_vidya":"Ayurveda","secondary_vidya":"Mantra","practical_application":"Bāla-graha (child spirit-affliction) diagnosis by lakṣaṇa (signs) and use of apotropaic/medicinal substances (vacā, gomaya, gomūtra) for protection and cleansing.","sutra_style":true}
Encyclopedic Reference: {"reference_type":"Description","entry_title":"Śrīdaṇḍin-graha (aṣṭama) lakṣaṇa and dravya-upacāra","lookup_keywords":["Śrīdaṇḍin graha","aṣṭama graha","vacā","gomūtra","bāla-graha lakṣaṇa"],"quick_summary":"Identifies the eighth graha named Śrīdaṇḍin by behavioral signs in the child and indicates protective/cleansing agents (vacā, cow-dung, cow-urine) used in graha-roga management."}
Concept: Lakṣaṇa-based classification of affliction and dravya-upacāra (substance-based countermeasure) for graha-roga.
Application: Use symptom clusters to decide the remedial protocol rather than treating all infant distress as identical.
Khanda Section: Ayurveda / Graha-roga (Bāla-graha and spirit-affliction signs)
Primary Rasa: bhayanaka
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A worried mother holds an infant who repeatedly stares toward the quarters; the child’s tongue trembles and the cry sounds choked, while an attendant prepares vacā with cow-dung and cow-urine for protective cleansing.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala temple mural style, interior household shrine, mother with infant showing directional gaze and tongue-jerk, attendant with brass bowl of vacā and cow-products, muted earth reds and greens, stylized faces, ritual purity motifs.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting, central mother-and-child, ornate halo-like arch behind, small side vignette of preparing vacā and gomūtra, rich colors with gold leaf accents on vessels and borders, devotional-protective mood.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore painting, clean linework, instructional composition: left panel shows symptoms (direction-gazing, tongue movement), right panel shows remedies (vacā, gomaya, gomūtra) in labeled bowls, soft shading and delicate ornament.","mughal_miniature_prompt":"Mughal miniature, domestic courtyard, physician/ritualist examining infant, detailed textiles, small containers of vacā and cow-products, expressive faces showing concern, fine brushwork and naturalistic palette."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"instructional","suggested_raga":"Bhairavi","pace":"medium","voice_tone":"instructional"}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: vacāgomayagomūtraiḥ = वचा-गोमय-गोमूत्रैः (samāhāra-dvandva, instr. pl.); cāṣṭame = च + अष्टमे; jihvācālanaṅkāsarodanaṃ parsed as जिह्वा-चालन-अङ्ग-आस्र-रोदनम् (orthography normalized: अङ्ग, आस्र).
Related Themes: Agni Purana 298 (graha-roga lakṣaṇa and bhaiṣajya/śānti measures)
FAQs
It gives a graha-roga diagnostic marker-set (direction-gazing, tongue-twitching, choking-type crying) and indicates standard protective/therapeutic agents—vacā, cow-dung, and cow-urine—used in combined ritual–medical management.
Alongside theology, the Agni Purana catalogs applied health knowledge: it classifies specific bāla-grahas by name and lists observable clinical-style signs with practical materia medica, blending Ayurveda, folk psychiatry, and ritual therapeutics.
By prescribing purificatory substances and identifying the affliction as a graha, the verse frames healing as both protection from harmful influences and restoration of ritual purity, supporting the family’s dharmic well-being and the child’s safeguarding.