Agni Purana — Vastu-Pratishtha & Isana-kalpa, Shloka 5
Chapter 65 — सभास्थापनकथनं
Account of Establishing an Assembly-hall
त्रिशालं वा द्विशालं वा एकशालमथापि वा व्ययाधिकं न कुर्वीत व्ययदोषकरं हि तत्
triśālaṃ vā dviśālaṃ vā ekaśālamathāpi vā vyayādhikaṃ na kurvīta vyayadoṣakaraṃ hi tat
Qu’il s’agisse d’un plan à trois salles, à deux salles, ou même à une seule salle, on ne doit pas l’entreprendre avec une dépense dépassant ses moyens ; car cela est, en vérité, une faute qui engendre une dépense ruineuse.
Lord Agni (instructional narration to Vasiṣṭha in the Agni Purana’s encyclopedic discourse)
Vidya Category: {"primary_vidya":"Vastu","secondary_vidya":"Arthashastra","practical_application":"Budgeting and scope-control in house-planning (choosing a 1/2/3-hall plan within one’s means to avoid debt and construction defects caused by cost-cutting later).","sutra_style":true}
Encyclopedic Reference: {"reference_type":"Procedure","entry_title":"Vāstu: Avoiding Vyaya-adhika (Over-expenditure) in Śālā-plans","lookup_keywords":["trishala","dvishala","ekashala","vyayadhika","vyayadosha"],"quick_summary":"Choose the house plan (one-, two-, or three-hall) according to capacity; over-spending itself is treated as a vāstu-fault because it triggers ruinous downstream expense and compromise."}
Concept: Artha-niyama (regulated expenditure) as part of gṛhastha prudence; ‘fault’ can be economic as well as ritual/architectural.
Application: Set a fixed budget before design; scale the plan to resources; avoid debt-driven shortcuts that later create structural and social instability.
Khanda Section: Vastu-shastra (Architecture and House-Planning)
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A householder and sthapati reviewing one-, two-, and three-hall floor plans with a ledger of costs, rejecting an over-budget design as a ‘vyaya-doṣa’.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala temple mural style, flat yet rich colors, sthapati with palm-leaf plans showing ekashala-dvishala-trishala layouts, householder holding a grantha and coin-pouch, emphasis on dharmic restraint, traditional borders.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting with gold leaf accents, central seated sthapati presenting three architectural plan tablets, householder offering measured coins, symbolic balance scale of income vs expense, ornate frame.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore painting style, fine linework, instructional scene: labeled śālā plans on a board, accountant-like tally marks, calm domestic setting, muted palette.","mughal_miniature_prompt":"Mughal miniature, detailed interior of a workshop, architect and patron comparing plans and account scrolls, precise geometry, subdued realism, marginal floral motifs."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"didactic","suggested_raga":"Shankarabharanam","pace":"medium","voice_tone":"instructional"}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: ekaśālamathāpi → ekaśālam atha api; vyayādhikaṃ (vyaya+adhika) and vyayadoṣakaraṃ (vyaya+doṣa+kara) treated as compounds.
Related Themes: Agni Purana Vāstu/Śilpa sections on house-types (śālā-bheda) and doṣa-prāyaścitta (where applicable)
FAQs
It gives a Vāstu-śāstra guideline for house-building: whichever plan (triśāla/dviśāla/ekaśāla) is chosen, construction must not exceed appropriate or affordable expenditure, since overspending itself is treated as a construction ‘defect’ (doṣa).
Alongside theology and ritual, the Agni Purana preserves applied sciences like Vāstu—here, a pragmatic economic rule for architecture—showing its scope as a manual of worldly governance and household life as well as spirituality.
By warning against wasteful, means-exceeding building, the verse aligns household action with dharma: avoiding greed-driven excess and the suffering, debt, and instability (doṣa) that arise from imprudent expenditure.