Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 71

The Exposition of the Maheśa Mantra

Mahēśa-mantra-prakāśana

Devanagari script

अघोरेभ्यस्तथा पूर्वमीरिता प्रथमा कला । अथ घोरेभ्य इत्यंते मोहास्यात्तदनंतरम् ॥ ७१ ॥

Transliteration

aghorebhyastathā pūrvamīritā prathamā kalā | atha ghorebhya ityaṃte mohāsyāttadanaṃtaram || 71 ||

Translation

အရင်က ပထမကလာကို “aghorebhyaḥ” ဟူ၍ စတင်ကာ သင်ကြားထား၏။ ထို့နောက် အဆုံးတွင် “ghorebhyaḥ” ဟူ၍ ပြီးသွားလျှင် ချက်ချင်းပင် မောဟ (မ भ्रम/မိုဟာ) သည် ပေါ်ထွန်းလာသည်။

Word by Word

• aghorebhyaḥ: from/after (the) Aghoras
• aghorebhyaḥ: Apādāna (अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: a-ghora (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी-विभक्ति (Ablative/अपादान), बहुवचन

• tathā: thus
• tathā: Kriyā-viśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb) अर्थः—एवम्/तद्वत् (thus)

• pūrvam: first/beforehand
• pūrvam: Kāla-adhikaraṇa (कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: pūrva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययीभूत-नपुंसक एकवचन (adverbial accusative) अर्थः—पूर्वतः (before/first)

• īritā: is stated
• īritā: Kriyā (क्रिया/participial predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √īr (धातु) + ta (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle), स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; अर्थः—उक्ता/प्रोक्ता (said)

• prathamā: first
• prathamā: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: prathama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; kalā-विशेषण

• kalā: kalā (energy/part)
• kalā: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kalā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/कर्ता), एकवचन

• atha: then
• atha: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atha (अव्यय)
• Form: क्रम-अव्यय (then)

• ghorebhyaḥ: from/after (the) Ghoras
• ghorebhyaḥ: Apādāna (अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ghora (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी-विभक्ति (Ablative/अपादान), बहुवचन

• iti: thus/‘iti’
• iti: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/quotative)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (अव्यय)
• Form: उद्धरण/इति-प्रयोग (quotative particle)

• ante: at the end
• ante: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: anta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/अधिकरण), एकवचन

• mohā: delusion (Mohā)
• mohā: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: moha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• syāt: should be
• syāt: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √as (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद; अर्थः—भवेत् (should be)

• tad-anantaram: immediately thereafter
• tad-anantaram: Kāla-adhikaraṇa (कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + anantara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययीभाव-समास; अव्यय (adverb) अर्थः—तदनन्तरं (immediately after that)

Speaker

Sanatkumara (teaching Narada in a technical Vedanga-style exposition)

Vrata Kalpa

Vrata: none

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka

FAQs

What is the spiritual significance of this verse in Narada Purana?

It stresses that mantra portions (kalās) must be applied in the right sequence; mixing or ending with the ‘ghora’ formula improperly leads to moha—inner confusion that disrupts ritual clarity and spiritual focus.

How does this verse explain the path of devotion (Bhakti)?

Bhakti is supported by disciplined practice: careful, reverent recitation prevents mental agitation (moha) and preserves the devotee’s steadiness, making worship more sattvic and effective.

What practical Vedic knowledge (Vedanga) is highlighted here?

Śikṣā (phonetics/recitation discipline) and procedural mantra-vidhi: identifying a ‘first kalā’ and recognizing that the ending formula affects the practitioner’s mental state, so order and closure matter in ritual recitation.