Shloka 8
Kārttika-vrata Discipline: Purity Rules, Morning Bath Saṅkalpa, Tilaka Injunctions, and Food Prohibitions
हृदि दामोदरं ध्यात्वा इमं मंत्रं ततो वदेत् । कार्तिकेहं करिष्यामि प्रातःस्नानं जनार्द्दन
hṛdi dāmodaraṃ dhyātvā imaṃ maṃtraṃ tato vadet | kārtikehaṃ kariṣyāmi prātaḥsnānaṃ janārddana
இதயத்தில் தாமோதரனைத் தியானித்து பின்னர் இந்த மந்திரத்தைச் சொல்ல வேண்டும்—“ஹே ஜனார்தன! கார்த்திக மாதத்தில் நான் அதிகாலை ஸ்நானம் செய்வேன்।”
Narrator/instructional voice of the text (vidhi-style injunction; specific dialogue speaker not explicit in this single verse).
Primary Rasa: bhakti (treated as shanta)
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
Type: tirtha
Sandhi Resolution Notes: kārtikehaṃ = kārtike + aham
FAQs
It prescribes prātaḥ-snāna—an early-morning ritual bath—undertaken as a Kārtika observance, preceded by meditating on Dāmodara and reciting a simple vow-like mantra.
Both are names of Viṣṇu (especially Kṛṣṇa as Dāmodara). The verse frames the bath as a devotional act (bhakti) offered to Viṣṇu, not merely a physical purification.
It emphasizes intentionality and devotion: inner remembrance (meditation in the heart) followed by a spoken resolve (mantra/vow) and consistent practice (daily early bath) during a sacred time.