Agni Purana — Dharma-shastra, Shloka 16
Chapter 171 — प्रायश्चित्तानि
Prāyaścittāni / Expiations
पञ्चगव्यं समश्नीयाद्धविष्याशीत्यनन्तरं मासेन द्विर् नरः कृत्वा सर्वपापैः प्रमुच्यते
pañcagavyaṃ samaśnīyāddhaviṣyāśītyanantaraṃ māsena dvir naraḥ kṛtvā sarvapāpaiḥ pramucyate
प्रथम पंचगव्य सेवन करावे, नंतर हविष्य-भोजनावर राहावे. जो पुरुष एका महिन्यात हे दोनदा करतो, तो सर्व पापांतून मुक्त होतो.
Lord Agni (in instruction to the sage Vasiṣṭha, as the primary narrator of Agni Purāṇa)
Vidya Category: {"primary_vidya":"Dharmashastra","secondary_vidya":"Vrata","practical_application":"Expiatory purification by ingesting pañcagavya followed by a haviṣya diet, repeated twice within a month for sin-removal.","sutra_style":true}
Encyclopedic Reference: {"reference_type":"Procedure","entry_title":"Pañcagavya-sevana with Haviṣya regimen (monthly twice) for sarvapāpa-śuddhi","lookup_keywords":["pancagavya","havishya","prayashchitta","shuddhi","sarvapapa"],"quick_summary":"Consume pañcagavya, then maintain a haviṣya diet; performing this sequence twice in a month is stated to free one from sins."}
Concept: Moral purification is supported by bodily discipline—regulated intake and restraint as instruments of inner correction.
Application: Pair confession/resolve with concrete regimen (dietary and ritual) to reinforce ethical reform.
Khanda Section: Prayashchitta & Shuddhi-vidhi (Expiation and Purificatory Observances)
Primary Rasa: shanta
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A penitent preparing and consuming pañcagavya, then taking simple haviṣya food, with a month-cycle indicated and the act repeated twice.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural, ritual courtyard, vessels containing pañcagavya components, devotee in white cloth sipping from a small cup, then eating simple haviṣya from a leaf-plate, serene purification mood.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore style, ornate brass vessels with gold accents, pañcagavya cup and ghee-lit lamp, devotee seated before a small altar, symbolic two marks for twice-in-a-month repetition.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore painting, clean instructional layout: labeled vessels for pañcagavya, then a bowl of haviṣya (ghee-rice), a lunar/month diagram showing two repetitions, fine detailing.","mughal_miniature_prompt":"Mughal miniature, detailed kitchen-ritual scene with attendants preparing simple offering-food, penitent consuming from delicate cups, calendar motif showing two observances within a month."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"instructional","suggested_raga":null,"pace":"medium","voice_tone":"instructional"}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: samaśnīyāt haviṣyāśī iti anantaram → samaśnīyāddhaviṣyāśītyanantaram; dvir naraḥ → dviḥ naraḥ.
Related Themes: Agni Purana 171 (kṛcchra and dietary prāyaścitta variants); Agni Purana 173 (sarvapāpa-prāyaścitta catalog)
FAQs
It prescribes a specific expiatory regimen: consuming pañcagavya followed by a period of haviṣya-based diet, to be performed twice within one month as a formal prayāścitta.
It exemplifies the Agni Purāṇa’s practical compendium-style coverage of dharma: not only theology and myth, but also operational rules for penance, purification, and regulated ritual diet.
The verse frames the practice as pāpa-kṣaya (destruction of karmic demerit): completing the regimen as stated is said to free one from “all sins,” i.e., to restore ritual and moral purity.