Shloka 2
Viśvāvasu-Prayoga (Marriage Mantra), Kālarātri/Ṛkṣakarṇī Invocation, and Yantra-Rakṣā at Twilight
ॐ नमो भगवति ऋक्षकर्णि चतुर्भुजे ऊर्ध्वकेशि त्रिनयने कालरात्रि मानुषाणां वसारुधिरभोजने अमुकस्य प्राप्तकालस्य मृत्युप्रदे हुं फट् हनहन दहदह मांसरुधिरं पचपच ऋक्षपत्नि स्वाहा / न तिथिर्न च नक्षत्रं नोपवासो विधीयते
oṃ namo bhagavati ṛkṣakarṇi caturbhuje ūrdhvakeśi trinayane kālarātri mānuṣāṇāṃ vasārudhirabhojane amukasya prāptakālasya mṛtyuprade huṃ phaṭ hanahana dahadaha māṃsarudhiraṃ pacapaca ṛkṣapatni svāhā / na tithirna ca nakṣatraṃ nopavāso vidhīyate
Om. Sembah sujud kepada Dewi yang diberkati, Ṛkṣakarṇī—berlengan empat, rambut terangkat, bermata tiga, Kālarātri, Malam Sang Kala—yang memakan lemak dan darah manusia; wahai pemberi maut pada saat yang telah ditetapkan bagi si anu: hūṃ, phaṭ! Hentam, hentam; bakar, bakar; masakkan daging dan darah; wahai Ṛkṣapatnī, permaisuri Ṛkṣa, svāhā. Bagi upacara ini, tiada ditetapkan tithi, nakṣatra, atau upavāsa (puasa).
Lord Vishnu (narrating to Garuda/Vinata-putra, in the Preta Kanda context)
Concept: Ritualized coercive power (abhicāra/ugra-mantra) aimed at death/affliction, presented as a technique not bound to tithi/nakṣatra/upavāsa constraints.
Vedantic Theme: Karma-kāṇḍa/śākta-tantric pragmatics contrasted with higher śānti; the verse foregrounds action and consequence rather than liberation.
Application: If studied textually: recognize the Purāṇic documentation of fierce rites and the cautionary ethic—avoid harm; redirect to protective/śānti practices and cultivate non-violence.
Primary Rasa: raudra
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
Related Themes: Garuda Purana 1.41 (mantra/yantra/abhicāra context continuing into 1.41.3); Garuda Purana 1.42 (shift to pavitra-āropaṇa rite)
FAQs
This verse frames death as occurring at a ‘prāptakāla’—an arrived or destined time—invoked here through a fierce mantra addressed to Kālarātrī/Ṛkṣakarṇī as ‘mṛtyupradā’ (bestower of death).
By emphasizing the moment of death (mṛtyu) as a decisive threshold, it implicitly marks the transition point after which the preta-condition and post-death pathways described in the Preta Kanda begin.
The verse highlights that some rites are described as independent of calendrical timing (tithi/nakṣatra) and fasting—reminding practitioners to prioritize prescribed intent and procedure over auspicious-date anxiety.