Padma Purana — Svarga Khanda, Shloka 16
Procedure of Ācamana and Rules of Ritual Purity (Śauca)
प्राशिताभिस्तथा वैश्यः स्त्रीशूद्रौ स्पर्शतोंऽततः । अंगुष्ठमूलांतरतो रेखायां ब्राह्ममुच्यते
prāśitābhistathā vaiśyaḥ strīśūdrau sparśatoṃ'tataḥ | aṃguṣṭhamūlāṃtarato rekhāyāṃ brāhmamucyate
ਵੈਸ਼੍ਯ ਨੂੰ (ਸ਼ੁੱਧ) ਮੰਨਿਆ ਜਾਂਦਾ ਹੈ ਭੋਜਨ ਦੇ ਅਵਸ਼ੇਸ਼ਾਂ ਨਾਲ; ਇਸਤਰੀ ਅਤੇ ਸ਼ੂਦ੍ਰ ਨੂੰ ਅੰਤ ਵਿੱਚ ਸਿਰਫ਼ ਸਪਰਸ਼ ਨਾਲ। ਪਰ ਬ੍ਰਾਹਮਣ ਲਈ ਘੋਸ਼ਿਤ ਹੈ ਕਿ ਅੰਗੂਠੇ ਦੇ ਮੂਲ ਅਤੇ ਤਰਜਨੀ ਦੇ ਵਿਚਕਾਰ ਪਾਣੀ ਦੀ ਜੋ ਰੇਖਾ ਵਗਦੀ ਹੈ, ਉਹੀ (ਸ਼ੁੱਧਿਕਰਣ) ਹੈ।
Unspecified (narrative instruction within Padma Purana Svarga-khaṇḍa)
Concept: Purification is described through varṇa/āśrama-coded conventions and specific ācamana mechanics; ritual śuddhi is mapped onto bodily loci and customary rules.
Application: For traditional practitioners: learn ācamana method carefully (water line at thumb-base region) and maintain cleanliness before pūjā; for general readers: take the principle of precision and intentionality in spiritual routines.
Primary Rasa: shanta
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A close, almost diagrammatic sacred scene: hands held in ācamana posture, a thin line of water glistening between the thumb-base and the adjacent finger, rendered as a luminous boundary. Around the hands, faint symbolic labels hover—‘brāhma’, ‘vaiśya’, ‘sparśa-śuddhi’—like a ritual manual made visual.","primary_figures":["hands of a ritual practitioner","a seated teacher-sage (optional)"],"setting":"A study-hall within a temple matha, palm-leaf manuscripts open, copper lota and spoon placed neatly on a low wooden desk.","lighting_mood":"forest dappled","color_palette":["copper bronze","palm-leaf tan","ink black","river blue","soft white"],"tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting style: instructional devotional tableau with a guru demonstrating ācamana hand posture, gold leaf highlighting the water-line between thumb-base and finger, ornate copper vessels, manuscript stand, rich red-green textiles, traditional iconographic clarity with decorative borders and luminous sacred geometry.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari miniature style: delicate close-up of hands and ritual vessels, thin sparkling water line emphasized with fine brushwork, a calm guru in the background teaching, cool muted palette, refined details of palm-leaf manuscripts and wooden desk, serene didactic mood.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural style: bold outlined hands in ācamana mudrā, stylized water arc in pale blue, guru figure with large eyes and simple shrine backdrop, strong natural pigment palette, symmetrical composition like a temple-wall instruction panel.","pichwai_prompt":"Pichwai cloth painting style: decorative border of lotuses and vines framing a central ritual-hands motif, copper vessels and manuscript patterns integrated into textile ornamentation, deep blue ground with gold highlights, devotional instructional aesthetic."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"narrative","suggested_raga":"Bhupali","pace":"moderate-narrative","voice_tone":"authoritative","sound_elements":["water pour (soft)","beads clicking","pages rustling","distant bell"]}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: प्राशिताभिस्तथा = प्राशिताभिः + तथा; स्त्रीशूद्रौ = स्त्री-शूद्रौ; स्पर्शतोंऽततः = स्पर्शतः + अन्ततः; अंगुष्ठमूलांतरतो = अङ्गुष्ठ-मूल-अन्तर-तः; ब्राह्ममुच्यते = ब्राह्मम् + उच्यते
FAQs
It refers to a conventional “water-line” or crease-area in the hand used in certain ācamana/purificatory sipping or sprinkling practices, here presented as a marker of purification for a Brāhmaṇa.
Primarily a ritual-legal (ācāra) rule about notions of purity/defilement and how purification is described for different social categories within that traditional framework.
Historically, it shows how purity regulations were codified in some Dharma-oriented passages; ethically, it can be read as evidence of social stratification in ritual norms rather than a universal measure of inner worth.