Agni Purana — Veda-vidhana & Vamsha, Shloka 26
Devapūjā, Vaiśvadeva Offering, and Bali (देवपूजावैश्वदेवबलिः)
विवस्वतः कुले जातौ द्वौ श्यावशबलौ शुनौ तेषां पिण्डं प्रदास्यामि पथि रक्षन्तु मे सदा
vivasvataḥ kule jātau dvau śyāvaśabalau śunau teṣāṃ piṇḍaṃ pradāsyāmi pathi rakṣantu me sadā
ဝီဝස්ဝတ် (Vivasvat) မျိုးရိုးမှ မွေးဖွားသော ခွေးနှစ်ကောင်—အမဲရောင်နှင့် အရောင်စပ်—တို့အား ငါ ပိဏ္ဍကို ပူဇော်မည်။ လမ်းခရီးတွင် ငါ့ကို အမြဲကာကွယ်စောင့်ရှောက်ကြပါစေ။
Lord Agni (in instruction to Vasiṣṭha on rites and protective observances)
Vidya Category: {"primary_vidya":"Dharmashastra","secondary_vidya":"Mantra","practical_application":"Protective funerary/path-rite: offering piṇḍa to the two dogs of Yama (born of Vivasvat’s lineage) and invoking their ongoing protection for safe travel and liminal passage.","sutra_style":true}
Encyclopedic Reference: {"reference_type":"Mantra","entry_title":"Invocation to Yama’s Two Dogs for Path Protection (Patha-rakṣā)","lookup_keywords":["Vivasvat","Yama dogs","śyāva śabala","patha-rakṣā","piṇḍa"],"quick_summary":"Offer piṇḍa to the two dogs associated with Yama and pray for continual protection on journeys, integrating preta-karma symbolism with practical travel-safety invocation."}
Concept: Acknowledging liminal guardians and aligning oneself with cosmic order reduces fear and obstacles; protection is sought through offering plus vow-like prayer.
Application: Before travel (or in rites for the departed), make a small offering with remembrance of the two dogs and recite the protective intent, cultivating vigilance and ritual confidence.
Khanda Section: Preta-karma & Patha-raksha (Funerary offerings and protective rites)
Primary Rasa: bhayanaka
Secondary Rasa: shanta
Type: Tirtha
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"Two guardian dogs—one dark, one mottled—stand at a crossroads or along a forest road; a ritualist offers a piṇḍa and prays for protection, with Yama’s realm implied symbolically in the background.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural: dramatic roadside threshold with two stylized dogs flanking the path, ritualist offering piṇḍa on a leaf; deep reds/ochres, bold outlines, subtle Yama iconography as distant motif.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore: symmetrical composition with two dogs as guardian figures, gold-embossed border, offering plate highlighted; luminous background suggesting protective aura.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore: narrative-instructional scene—traveler/ritualist at path edge, two dogs labeled śyāva/śabala; fine linework, calm but vigilant mood.","mughal_miniature_prompt":"Mughal miniature: detailed landscape road with trees and travelers; two dogs in foreground, offering placed; refined naturalism, subdued palette, precise depiction of fur patterns."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"devotional","suggested_raga":"Bhairavi","pace":"slow","voice_tone":"contemplative"}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: No major sandhi beyond standard euphony; śyāva+śabalau as dvandva compound.
Related Themes: Agni Purana 263 (preta-karma and patha-rakṣā context)
FAQs
It prescribes a protective rite linked with piṇḍa-dāna: offering a piṇḍa to the two (mythic) dogs described as śyāva and śabala, seeking their continual protection while travelling.
Alongside theology, the Agni Purana catalogs practical ritual applications—here, a compact travel-protection observance integrated with funerary-style offerings (piṇḍa), showing how daily safety rites and śrāddha/preta themes interlock.
The act of giving piṇḍa is a meritorious offering that pacifies and aligns unseen forces; invoking these guardian dogs is framed as a dhārmic safeguard, aiming at obstacle-removal and protection during journeys.