Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 24

Hayagrīva-pūjā-vyākhyāna

Worship Procedure and Mantra-Siddhi of Hayagrīva

Devanagari script

महालक्ष्मीं स लभते तत्र तत्र न संशयः । जुहुयात्पायसैर्लक्षं वाचस्पतिसमो भवेत् ॥ २४ ॥

Transliteration

mahālakṣmīṃ sa labhate tatra tatra na saṃśayaḥ | juhuyātpāyasairlakṣaṃ vācaspatisamo bhavet || 24 ||

Translation

Ia memperoleh Mahālakṣmī di mana pun ia berada—tanpa keraguan. Bila ia mempersembahkan seratus ribu āhuti dengan pāyasa (bubur susu suci), ia menjadi setara dengan Vācaspati (Bṛhaspati) dalam kemuliaan sabda.

Word by Word

• महा-लक्ष्मीम्: great Lakṣmī (great prosperity)
• महा-लक्ष्मीम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: महा + लक्ष्मी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (mahantī lakṣmīḥ)

• सः: he
• सः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• लभते: obtains
• लभते: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: लभ् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (present), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय

• तत्र: there (in every such place)
• तत्र: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: पुनरुक्ति (repetition for emphasis)

• न: no/not
• न: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-अव्यय (negation particle)

• संशयः: doubt
• संशयः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: संशय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• जुहुयात्: should offer (into fire)
• जुहुयात्: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: हु (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• पायसैः: with rice-pudding (pāyasa)
• पायसैः: Karana (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पायस (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति (करण), बहुवचन

• लक्षम्: a hundred thousand (times/units)
• लक्षम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: लक्ष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; संख्या (100,000)

• वाचस्पति-समः: equal to Bṛhaspati (lord of speech)
• वाचस्पति-समः: Predicative (विधेय-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वाचस्पति + सम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; उपमान-तत्पुरुषः (vācaspateḥ samaḥ)

• भवेत्: would become
• भवेत्: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

Speaker

Sanatkumara (teaching Narada in a Vedanga/ritual-technical context)

Vrata Kalpa

Vrata: none

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: bhakti

Characters & Entities

• Mahalakshmi
• Vachaspati (Brhaspati)

FAQs

What is the spiritual significance of this verse in Narada Purana?

The verse links disciplined Vedic fire-offering (homa) with two classical fruits: the grace of Mahālakṣmī (prosperity and auspiciousness) and the refinement of vāṇī (sacred speech), indicating that ritual purity and sustained practice can transform both life-conditions and inner capacities.

How does this verse explain the path of devotion (Bhakti)?

Though framed as ritual instruction, it implies bhakti through reverent offering: repeated āhutis made with faith and correctness are treated as worship that attracts divine śrī (Lakṣmī) and elevates one’s speech toward dharmic, mantra-aligned expression.

What practical Vedic knowledge (Vedanga) is highlighted here?

It highlights ritual procedure and measurable discipline—performing homa with a specified offering (pāyasa) and a specified count (lakṣa āhuti). It also implicitly points to correct mantra-recitation and liturgical speech (connected with Śikṣā/Vyākaraṇa as supports for precise utterance).