Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 53
The Greatness of the Gaṅgā (Gaṅgā-māhātmya): Saudāsa/Kalmāṣapāda’s Curse and Release
ब्राह्मणी स्वपतिं वीक्ष्य निशाचरकरस्थितम् । शिरस्यञ्जलिमाधाय प्रोवाच भयविह्वला ॥ ५४ ॥
brāhmaṇī svapatiṃ vīkṣya niśācarakarasthitam | śirasyañjalimādhāya provāca bhayavihvalā || 54 ||
आपला पती निशाचराच्या करग्रासात अडकलेला पाहून ब्राह्मणी भयाने थरथरली। तिने शिरावर अंजली धरून विनयाने बोलली।
Narrator (Purāṇic narrative voice, traditionally Sūta)
Vrata: none
Primary Rasa: karuna
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
FAQs
It highlights śaraṇāgati (seeking refuge) through the añjali gesture: when confronted by adharma and danger, the righteous turn inward to humility, prayer, and dharmic speech rather than panic or violence.
Though God is not named in this line, the posture—añjali placed on the head—signals reverent surrender, a classic bhakti mood where helplessness (ākulatā) becomes the doorway to earnest supplication and divine help in the narrative flow.
The verse implicitly reflects śikṣā and ācāra: the culturally codified gesture of añjali (a ritual etiquette of reverence) used in prayerful address—an applied aspect of Vedic conduct rather than a technical rule of grammar or astrology.