Agni Purana — Yoga & Brahma-vidya, Shloka 55
Adhyāya 379 — अद्वैतब्रह्मविज्ञानम्
Advaita-brahma-vijñāna
ऋतुर्वर्षसहस्रान्ते पुनस्तन्नगरं ययौ निदाघं नगरप्रान्ते एकान्ते स्थितमब्रवीत् एकान्ते स्थीयते कस्मान्निदाघं ऋतुरब्रवीत्
ṛturvarṣasahasrānte punastannagaraṃ yayau nidāghaṃ nagaraprānte ekānte sthitamabravīt ekānte sthīyate kasmānnidāghaṃ ṛturabravīt
နှစ်တစ်ထောင် ပြည့်ဆုံးချိန်တွင် ရ္တုသည် ထိုမြို့သို့ ထပ်မံသွား၏။ မြို့အနားစွန်း၌ တစ်ယောက်တည်း သီးသန့်ရပ်နေသော နိဒါဃကို မြင်၍ ပြောသည်—“နိဒါဃ၊ အဘယ်ကြောင့် သီးသန့်နေထိုင်သနည်း?” ဟု ရ္တုက နိဒါဃအား မေး၏။
Ṛtu (addressing Nidāgha)
Vidya Category: {"primary_vidya":"Samanya","secondary_vidya":"Philosophy","practical_application":"Narrative frame for teaching detachment: solitude (ekanta) becomes a prompt for self-examination and guidance under a teacher; encourages periodic retreat and reflective dialogue.","sutra_style":false}
Encyclopedic Reference: {"reference_type":"Description","entry_title":"Rtu Returns After a Thousand Years: Questioning Nidagha’s Solitude","lookup_keywords":["Rtu return","varsha-sahasra","Nidagha ekanta","nagara-pranta","vairagya dialogue"],"quick_summary":"After a long interval, the teacher revisits the disciple and finds him in solitude, initiating inquiry into the reason for seclusion—setting the stage for deeper instruction on detachment and knowledge."}
Alamkara Type: Prashna (interrogative) and Itivritta (narrative)
Concept: Ekanta (solitude) is examined: whether it is mere physical isolation or true inner detachment; sets up discrimination between external and internal renunciation.
Application: Adopt periodic solitude with inquiry; test whether solitude reduces ego and craving or merely changes location.
Khanda Section: Sahitya-shastra / Niti-katha (Didactic dialogue on detachment and self-knowledge)
Primary Rasa: Shanta
Secondary Rasa: Adbhuta (time-span wonder)
Type: Kingdom
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A city outskirts scene: Nidagha stands alone in a quiet spot beyond the town; Rtu arrives after a long time and questions him about his solitude.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural, stylized city gate at left, quiet grove at right, Nidagha standing in ekanta, Rtu approaching with calm authority, warm earth palette, narrative clarity","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting, town edge with decorative architecture, two sages highlighted with gold accents, emphasis on the moment of questioning, ornate border framing the scene","mysore_prompt":"Mysore style, detailed but gentle landscape, clear body language: teacher approaching, disciple in composed solitude, instructional narrative composition","mughal_miniature_prompt":"Mughal miniature, panoramic outskirts with walls and fields, two ascetics meeting, fine foliage and architecture, subtle depiction of long time via seasonal motifs"}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"epic","suggested_raga":"Bhairavi","pace":"medium","voice_tone":"epic"}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: ऋतुर्वर्षसहस्रान्ते = ऋतुः + वर्षसहस्रान्ते; पुनस्तन्नगरम् = पुनः + तत् + नगरम्; स्थितमब्रवीत् = स्थितम् + अब्रवीत्; कस्मान्निदाघम् = कस्मात् + निदाघम्; ऋतुरब्रवीत् = ऋतुः + अब्रवीत्.
Related Themes: Agni Purana 379 (continuation of Nidagha–Rtu samvada narrative)
FAQs
No ritual procedure is taught here; the verse initiates a didactic inquiry—Ṛtu questions Nidāgha’s practice of solitude, setting up instruction on renunciation and self-knowledge.
Alongside ritual, law, and other sciences, the Agni Purana also preserves philosophical and ethical dialogues; this narrative segment functions as a compact teaching unit on vairāgya (detachment) through question-and-answer.
The question highlights solitude as a conscious spiritual discipline; it frames renunciation as something to be examined for right understanding, not merely adopted outwardly.