The Greatness of the Month of Māgha
Māgha-snāna, Harivāsara, and the Kāṣṭhīlā-Upākhyāna
येन पुण्येन सुभगे मुच्येयं कर्मबन्धनात् । तन्निर्दिशामि सुमहद्गतिदं त्वं निशामय ॥ ६ ॥
yena puṇyena subhage mucyeyaṃ karmabandhanāt | tannirdiśāmi sumahadgatidaṃ tvaṃ niśāmaya || 6 ||
Wahai yang berbahagia, dengan pahala apakah aku dapat dibebaskan daripada belenggu karma? Aku akan menunjukkan jalan yang amat agung, yang mengurniakan tujuan yang tinggi—dengarlah dengan penuh perhatian.
Narrative voice (instructional speaker addressing a female interlocutor)
Vrata: none
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: bhakti
It frames the core soteriological problem—bondage to karma—and introduces a promised upāya (means) that grants the “very great gati,” i.e., a liberating spiritual end.
While this line itself is a preface, it sets up an instruction on the liberating “puṇya” that leads to the highest goal—typically unfolded in Narada Purana through dharma, tīrtha-sevā, vrata, and ultimately Vishnu-oriented devotion as the decisive purifier.
No specific Vedāṅga is taught in this verse; it functions as an upadeśa-introduction, preparing the listener for a concrete dhārmic practice (often vrata/tīrtha-vidhi) that will be explained next.