Agni Purana — Agneya-vidya, Shloka 45
The Description of the Sarvatobhadra Maṇḍala (सर्वतोभद्रमण्डलकथनम्)
षोडशाब्जान्यथो वीथी चतुर्विंशतिपङ्कजं वीथीपद्मानि द्वात्रिंशत् पङ्क्तिवीथिकजान्यथ
ṣoḍaśābjānyatho vīthī caturviṃśatipaṅkajaṃ vīthīpadmāni dvātriṃśat paṅktivīthikajānyatha
ယခု ဝီထီ (လမ်းကြောင်း) ကို အဗ္ဇ (ကြာပန်းယူနစ်) ၁၆ ဖြင့် တိုင်းတာသည်။ စတုရ္ဝိံశတိ အမျိုးအစားတွင် ကြာပန်းယူနစ် ၂၄ ရှိသည်။ ဝီထီ-ပဒ္မ သည် ၃၂ ကြာပန်းယူနစ်ဖြစ်ပြီး၊ ထိုနည်းတူ ပင်္ကတိ-ဝီထိကာ အမျိုးအစားအတွက်လည်း ကြာပန်းယူနစ်များကို သတ်မှတ်ထားသည်။
Lord Agni (in instruction to the sage Vasiṣṭha, Agni Purāṇa’s primary didactic frame)
Vidya Category: {"primary_vidya":"Vastu","secondary_vidya":"Shilpa","practical_application":"Standardizing corridor/aisle and layout module sizes using lotus-units (abja/padma) for different plan-types (vīthī, caturviṃśati, vīthī-padma, paṅkti-vīthikā).","sutra_style":true}
Encyclopedic Reference: {"reference_type":"List","entry_title":"Vīthī and Padma Unit Measures: 16/24/32 Lotus-Units by Plan-Type","lookup_keywords":["vīthī","abja","padma","caturviṃśati","paṅkti-vīthikā"],"quick_summary":"Defines modular measures in lotus-units: vīthī = 16, caturviṃśati type = 24, vīthī-padma = 32, and corresponding lotus-unit specification for paṅkti-vīthikā—supporting consistent proportional planning."}
Concept: Order and beauty arise from repeatable modules; sacred architecture uses symbolic units (padma/abja) to maintain proportional harmony.
Application: When drafting or scaling a plan, choose the plan-type and apply its lotus-unit count to set corridor widths/lengths and related grid dimensions consistently.
Khanda Section: Vāstu-Śāstra (Architecture & Temple-Planning)
Primary Rasa: shanta
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"An architect’s board shows four plan labels with lotus icons: vīthī (16), caturviṃśati (24), vīthī-padma (32), and paṅkti-vīthikā with its lotus-unit count; measuring cords and a grid are displayed.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural, stylized lotus icons with numbers 16/24/32, craftsmen holding measuring cords, a large grid-plan backdrop, bold outlines and temple decorative frame","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore, gold-leaf lotus motifs marking each unit set, architect presenting a measurement tablet, rich ornamentation, clear numeric inscriptions","mysore_prompt":"Mysore, clean instructional plate: lotus-unit counters, neat Devanagari labels, precise grid and corridor depiction, subdued colors for readability","mughal_miniature_prompt":"Mughal miniature, atelier scene with architect and scribes, detailed measurement chart with lotus symbols and numbers, fine instruments, elegant interior setting"}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"instructional","suggested_raga":"Arabhi","pace":"medium","voice_tone":"instructional"}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: षोडशाब्जानि = षोडश + अब्जानि. अथो = अथ + उ. चतुर्विंशतिपङ्कजं = चतुर्विंशति + पङ्कजम्. पङ्क्तिवीथिकजानि = पङ्क्ति + वीथिका + जानि.
Related Themes: Agni Purana Vāstu passages defining padma/abja units, vīthī types, and mandala classifications
FAQs
It gives vāstu-technical specifications for corridor (vīthī) types by fixing their standard lengths in lotus-module counts (abja/padma/paṅkaja), used to proportion temple passages and subsidiary aisles.
Beyond mythology, it preserves applied architectural standards—precise modular measurements and typologies—showing the text’s coverage of practical sciences like Vāstu-Śāstra alongside ritual and theology.
Correct proportional design in sacred architecture is treated as dharmic order (ṛta) embodied in space; building according to prescribed measures supports proper worship-flow, sanctity, and the merit (puṇya) of constructing or sponsoring a temple.