Agni Purana — Yoga & Brahma-vidya, Shloka 34
Āgneya-Purāṇa-māhātmya
The Greatness and Self-Testimony of the Agni Purāṇa
यः पठेच्छृणुयाद्ध्यास लिखेद्वा लेखयेदपि श्रावयेत्पाठयेद्वापि पूजयेद्धारयेदपि
yaḥ paṭhecchṛṇuyāddhyāsa likhedvā lekhayedapi śrāvayetpāṭhayedvāpi pūjayeddhārayedapi
ആർ ഇത് പാരായണം ചെയ്യുകയോ കേൾക്കുകയോ ഏകാഗ്രമായി ധ്യാനത്തോടെ പഠിക്കുകയോ ചെയ്യുന്നു; അല്ലെങ്കിൽ എഴുതുകയോ എഴുതിപ്പിക്കുകയോ ചെയ്യുന്നു; അല്ലെങ്കിൽ കേൾപ്പിക്കുകയോ പാരായണം ചെയ്യിപ്പിക്കുകയോ ചെയ്യുന്നു; അല്ലെങ്കിൽ പൂജിക്കുകയോ ശരീരത്തിൽ ധരിക്കുകയോ ചെയ്യുന്നു—
Lord Agni (traditional Agni Purana narrator) addressing the sage Vasiṣṭha
Vidya Category: {"primary_vidya":"Dharmashastra","secondary_vidya":"Vrata","practical_application":"Enumerates meritorious engagements with the text—reciting, listening, studying, copying/commissioning, teaching, sponsoring recitation, worshipping, and carrying—forming a practical checklist for lay and scholarly practice.","sutra_style":true}
Encyclopedic Reference: {"reference_type":"List","entry_title":"Ten Modes of Merit with the Agneya Purana (Pāṭha–Śravaṇa–Lekhana–Pūjā–Dhāraṇa)","lookup_keywords":["patha","sravana","dhyasa","lekhana","dharana"],"quick_summary":"Merit is attributed to multiple forms of contact with the Purana: recitation, hearing, focused study, writing or commissioning writing, arranging public hearing/teaching, worship, and even carrying the text."}
Concept: Text-centered sādhanā: śravaṇa (hearing), manana/dhyāsa (focused study), pravacana (teaching), and pūjā (reverence) are all valid devotional-educational pathways.
Application: Adopt one or more modes according to capacity: daily reading, weekly listening, sponsoring a recitation, copying/donating a manuscript, or keeping a small portable copy respectfully.
Khanda Section: Phala-śruti (Merit of recitation, hearing, copying, teaching and worship of the text)
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A sequence-like depiction: a person reciting from a manuscript, listeners seated; a scribe copying; a patron commissioning writing; a teacher instructing students; a devotee performing book-worship; and someone carrying a wrapped manuscript respectfully.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural, narrative panel with multiple vignettes: pāṭha, śravaṇa, lekhana, pravacana, pūjā, dhāraṇa; bold outlines, warm tones, temple-like interior spaces, emphasis on ritual cleanliness.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting, central manuscript with gold embellishment, surrounding small scenes of recitation, listening, copying, and worship; gold foil on lamps and manuscript borders; auspicious symmetry.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore style, instructional storyboard layout: clearly labeled actions (pāṭha, śravaṇa, dhyāsa, lekhana, pāṭhana, pūjā, dhāraṇa), fine linework, calm colors, didactic clarity.","mughal_miniature_prompt":"Mughal miniature, refined scholarly scenes: a reciter in a pavilion, attentive audience, scribes with inkpots, a teacher with students, a devotee offering flowers to a manuscript, a traveler carrying a wrapped book; intricate textiles and borders."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"instructional","suggested_raga":"Shankara","pace":"medium","voice_tone":"instructional"}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: paṭhecchṛṇuyāt = paṭhet + śṛṇuyāt; śṛṇuyāddhyāsa = śṛṇuyāt + dhyāsa; likhedvā = likhet + vā; lekhayedapi = lekhayet + api; śrāvayetpāṭhayedvāpi = śrāvayet + pāṭhayet + vā + api; pūjayeddhārayedapi = pūjayet + dhārayet + api.
Related Themes: Agni Purana phala-śruti continuation (results of these acts); Agni Purana passages on dāna, vrata, and svādhyāya
FAQs
It prescribes the recognized modes of sacred-text engagement—recitation, listening, attentive study, copying/commissioning, public reading, teaching, worship, and carrying the text—each treated as a valid religious practice.
By listing multiple channels of preservation and dissemination (study, pedagogy, manuscript copying, and ritual honour of the book), it reflects the Purana’s self-conscious role as a compendium meant to be transmitted across audiences, not merely read privately.
The verse frames engagement with the Purana in any of these forms as spiritually efficacious, implying that merit accrues not only from personal recitation but also from enabling others to hear/learn and from reverently preserving the text.