Agni Purana — Mantra-shastra, Shloka 10
Chapter 306 — त्रैलोक्यमोहनमन्त्राः
Mantras for Enchanting the Three Worlds
विन्यसेन्न्यस्तहस्तान्तः शक्तिं मस्तकवक्त्रयोः गुह्ये गले दिक्षु हृदि कक्षौ देहे च सर्वतः
vinyasennyastahastāntaḥ śaktiṃ mastakavaktrayoḥ guhye gale dikṣu hṛdi kakṣau dehe ca sarvataḥ
हस्त-न्यास करके, शक्ति को मस्तक और मुख पर, गुप्तांग पर, कंठ पर, दिशाओं में, हृदय में, कक्षों (बगल) में तथा समस्त देह में स्थापित करे।
Lord Agni (instructing the sage Vasiṣṭha in ritual procedure)
Vidya Category: {"primary_vidya":"Tantra","secondary_vidya":"Puja-vidhi","practical_application":"Perform śakti-nyāsa by touching/placing mantra-power at specified bodily loci to sacralize the practitioner’s body as a ritual field before worship.","sutra_style":true}
Encyclopedic Reference: {"reference_type":"Procedure","entry_title":"Śakti-nyāsa on head, face, guhya, throat, directions, heart, armpits, and whole body","lookup_keywords":["nyasa","shakti-nyasa","kara-nyasa","anga-nyasa","deha-shuddhi"],"quick_summary":"Install Śakti through prescribed touch-points—head, face, guhya, throat, directions, heart, armpits, and the entire body—so the body becomes fit as a mantra-vessel for worship."}
Concept: Deha as mantra-mandala: embodiment of Śakti through nyāsa.
Application: Before japa/puja, perform systematic touch with mantra-intent to stabilize attention and create a protected, consecrated inner space.
Khanda Section: Puja-vidhi / Tantra: Nyasa and Shakti-nyasa (ritual placement of power)
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A practitioner performing nyāsa: hands touching head, face, throat, heart, guhya, armpits, then extending awareness to all directions and the whole body as a radiant field.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural, standing sādhaka with stylized hand gestures touching specific body points, surrounding directional deities as faint guardians, bold outlines, sacred reds/ochres.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore style, figure with gold-highlighted touch-points (head, face, throat, heart), ornate border, subtle directional motifs at corners, devotional ritual mood.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore painting, step-by-step nyāsa tableau in panels, each panel showing a touch-point with small Sanskrit labels, clean composition, manuscript aesthetic.","mughal_miniature_prompt":"Mughal miniature, refined figure in a quiet chamber performing ritual touches, compass-like directional symbols around, delicate shading and calligraphy cartouche."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"contemplative","suggested_raga":"Shree","pace":"medium","voice_tone":"instructional"}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: vinyasennyasta- → vinyaset nyasta-; mastakavaktrayoḥ → mastaka-vaktrayoḥ (dvandva); sequence lists loci in सप्तमी.
Related Themes: Agni Purana 306 (nyāsa and pūjā sequence)
FAQs
It teaches Śakti-nyāsa: the precise bodily locations where mantra-power (Śakti) is ritually installed—head, face, throat, heart, guhya-region, armpits, the directions, and finally the whole body—for consecration and protection.
Beyond mythology, the Agni Purana preserves practical liturgical technology—step-by-step tantric/pujā procedures like nyāsa—showing its role as a compendium of ritual science alongside topics such as governance, medicine, and poetics.
Nyāsa sacralizes the practitioner’s body as a mantra-seat, aiming at purification, internalization of divinity, and protective merit (rakṣā) through the conscious installation of Śakti in key bodily and spatial points.