Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 2
Prāyaścitta for Mahāpātakas and the Sin-destroying Power of Viṣṇu-smaraṇa
प्रायश्चित्तविहीनैस्तु यत्कर्म क्रियते मुने । तत्सर्वं निष्फलं प्रोक्तं राक्षसैः परिसेवितम् ॥ २ ॥
prāyaścittavihīnaistu yatkarma kriyate mune | tatsarvaṃ niṣphalaṃ proktaṃ rākṣasaiḥ parisevitam || 2 ||
முனிவரே, பிராயச்சித்தமின்றி செய்யப்படும் எந்தக் கர்மமும் முழுதும் பயனற்றது என்று கூறப்படுகிறது; அது ராக்ஷஸப் பிரவೃತ್ತிகளால் சூழப்பட்டதாகச் சொல்லப்படுகிறது॥
Sanatkumara (teaching Narada)
Vrata: none
Primary Rasa: raudra
Secondary Rasa: shanta
FAQs
It teaches that ritual action must be supported by purification and expiation; otherwise the act loses spiritual efficacy and cannot yield the intended dharmic fruit.
By insisting on inner and outer purity, it supports bhakti as a sincere offering; devotion is not merely performance—without cleansing faults through prāyaścitta, worship becomes spiritually hollow.
It points to ritual correctness and procedural discipline (Kalpa/Smārta-vidhi): expiations are part of the prescribed framework that safeguards the validity of yajña, vrata, and other karmas.