Shloka 28
मृत: श्रूयेत यो जीव: परेयु: पशवो यदा । इष्टिरशकपालेन कार्या सुरभिमतेडग्नये,यदि किसी प्राणीका मृत्युसूचक विलाप आदि सुनायी दे अथवा कुक्कुर आदि पशु उस अग्निका स्पर्श कर लें, उस दशामें मिट्टीके आठ पुरवोंमें संस्कृत पुरोडाशद्वारा सुरभिमान् नामक अग्निकी प्रसन्नताके लिये होम करना चाहिये
mṛtaḥ śrūyeta yo jīvaḥ pareyūḥ paśavo yadā | iṣṭir aśakapālena kāryā surabhimate ’gnaye ||
Mārkaṇḍeya said: “If one hears a living being’s death-omen—such as wailing and the like—or if animals such as dogs come into contact with that sacred fire, then, in that condition, an expiatory offering should be performed: an iṣṭi with a puroḍāśa prepared on eight earthen dishes, as a homa to propitiate Agni known as ‘Surabhimān.’”
मार्कण्डेय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches ritual responsibility: when inauspicious signs or impurity affect a sacred fire, one should restore sanctity through a prescribed expiatory offering, emphasizing careful maintenance of dharma in household and sacrificial practice.
Mārkaṇḍeya instructs what to do if death-omens are heard or if animals touch the ritual fire: perform an iṣṭi/homa using an eight-dish puroḍāśa to propitiate Agni under the epithet Surabhimān, thereby removing the fault and reestablishing auspiciousness.