Agni Purana — Raja-dharma, Shloka 1
Chapter 230: शकुनानि (Śakunāni) — Omens
इत्य् आग्नेये महापुराणे माङ्गल्याध्यायो नाम एकोनत्रिंशदधिकद्विशततमो ऽध्यायः अथ त्रिंशदधिकद्विशततमो ऽध्यायः शकुनानि पुष्कर उवाच तिष्ठतो गमने प्रश्ने पुरुषस्य शुभाशुभं निवेदयन्ति शकुना देशस्य नगरस्य च
ity āgneye mahāpurāṇe māṅgalyādhyāyo nāma ekonatriṃśadadhikadviśatatamo 'dhyāyaḥ atha triṃśadadhikadviśatatamo 'dhyāyaḥ śakunāni puṣkara uvāca tiṣṭhato gamane praśne puruṣasya śubhāśubhaṃ nivedayanti śakunā deśasya nagarasya ca
ਇਸ ਤਰ੍ਹਾਂ ਅਗ્નੇਯ ਮਹਾਪੁਰਾਣ ਵਿੱਚ ‘ਮਾਂਗਲ੍ਯ’ ਨਾਮਕ ਅਧਿਆਇ ੨੨੯ਵਾਂ ਹੈ। ਹੁਣ ੨੩੦ਵਾਂ ਅਧਿਆਇ ‘ਸ਼ਕੁਨ’ ਸ਼ੁਰੂ ਹੁੰਦਾ ਹੈ। ਪੁਸ਼ਕਰ ਨੇ ਕਿਹਾ—ਠਹਿਰਣ, ਯਾਤਰਾ ਲਈ ਨਿਕਲਣ ਜਾਂ ਪ੍ਰਸ਼ਨ ਕਰਨ ਵੇਲੇ ਸ਼ਕੁਨ ਮਨੁੱਖ ਨੂੰ ਸ਼ੁਭ-ਅਸ਼ੁਭ ਫਲ ਦੱਸਦੇ ਹਨ; ਅਤੇ ਦੇਸ਼ ਤੇ ਨਗਰ ਲਈ ਵੀ (ਮੰਗਲ-ਅਮੰਗਲ) ਸੰਕੇਤ ਕਰਦੇ ਹਨ।
Puṣkara
Vidya Category: {"primary_vidya":"Jyotisha","secondary_vidya":"Arthashastra","practical_application":"Framework for omen-based decision support: interpreting śakuna for travel, inquiry, and public welfare (region/city), aiding personal choices and administrative planning.","sutra_style":false}
Encyclopedic Reference: {"reference_type":"Description","entry_title":"Śakuna-prakaraṇa: scope of omens for individuals and polities (chapter opening)","lookup_keywords":["śakuna","nimitta","yātrā","praśna","deśa nagara"],"quick_summary":"Introduces the śakuna chapter: omens are said to indicate auspicious/inauspicious outcomes for a person’s actions (standing, departing, questioning) and for collective entities like regions and cities."}
Concept: Nimitta as a knowledge-system applied to action (pravṛtti): signs are interpreted relative to context—stillness, movement, and inquiry—and scaled from individual to civic outcomes.
Application: Before travel or major decisions, observe and record omens; for governance, maintain omen-reports for city/region to time announcements, journeys, and public rites.
Khanda Section: Jyotiṣa & Śakuna-śāstra (Omens and prognostication)
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
Type: Kingdom
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"Puṣkara addressing an audience, opening a treatise on omens; three situational vignettes: a man standing still, a traveler setting out, and a questioner consulting; in the background, a map-like depiction of a city and surrounding region indicating collective prognostication.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural: sage Puṣkara teaching from palm-leaf text; three framed vignettes (standing, departing, questioning); stylized city walls and countryside; bold outlines, sacred scholastic ambience.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore: Puṣkara seated on a dais with gold-leaf halo-like ornamentation; attendants and students; gold-highlighted cityscape panel; rich ceremonial palette emphasizing ‘māṅgalya’ and authority.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore style didactic: clear narrative panels labeled ‘tiṣṭhataḥ’, ‘gamane’, ‘praśne’; a schematic city/region backdrop; precise linework suited to instructional content.","mughal_miniature_prompt":"Mughal miniature: learned assembly with Puṣkara speaking; travelers and petitioners in separate corners; detailed city and landscape; naturalistic architecture and textiles, scholarly atmosphere."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"instructional","suggested_raga":"Kalyani","pace":"medium","voice_tone":"instructional"}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: ity āgneye = iti + āgneye (i + ā sandhi → yā); 'adhyāyo 'dhyāyaḥ = adhyāyaḥ + adhyāyaḥ (visarga before vowel shown as 'o); śubhāśubhaṃ = śubha + aśubham (ā from a+a sandhi).
Related Themes: Agni Purana 229 (Māṅgalya-adhyāya); Agni Purana 230 (Śakuna-adhyāya, opening)
FAQs
It introduces Śakuna-śāstra (omenology): interpreting signs to judge auspicious or inauspicious outcomes for a person’s actions (standing, travel) and for inquiries/decisions.
By opening a chapter on practical prognostication (omens) applied to personal decisions and civic/territorial welfare, it shows the text’s coverage beyond theology—into applied divinatory and decision-making sciences.
Reading auspiciousness before acting supports dhārmic timing and restraint—encouraging actions undertaken with discernment, avoidance of harmful outcomes, and alignment with beneficial results for oneself and the community.