Agni Purana — Agneya-vidya, Shloka 25

Chapter 40 — भूपरिग्रहो नाम

Bhū-parigraha) / अर्घ्यदानविधानम् (Arghya-dāna-vidhāna

Devanagari script

सूत्रमार्देण हे ब्रह्मंस्तोयधाराञ्च भ्रामयेत् पूर्ववत्तेन मार्गेण सप्त वीजानि वापयेत्

Transliteration

sūtramārdeṇa he brahmaṃstoyadhārāñca bhrāmayet pūrvavattena mārgeṇa sapta vījāni vāpayet

Translation

హే బ్రాహ్మణా! తడిచిన సూత్రంతో జలధారను వలయంగా తిప్పాలి; తరువాత అదే పూర్వోక్త మార్గంలో ఏడు విత్తనాలను విత్తాలి.

Word by Word

• sūtram: thread
• sūtram: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sūtra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular

• ārdeṇa: with (it) being wet / using a wet (thread)
• ārdeṇa: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ārda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular; adjective used substantively: ‘with a wet (one)’ / ‘wet’

• he: O
• he: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: he (अव्यय)
• Form: Vocative particle (सम्बोधन)

• brahman: O Brāhmaṇa / O Brahman
• brahman: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Vocative (8th/सम्बोधन), Singular

• toya-dhārāḥ: streams of water
• toya-dhārāḥ: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: toya (प्रातिपदिक) + dhārā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Plural; समासः—षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (toyasya dhārā)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Conjunction particle (समुच्चय)

• bhrāmayet: should cause to move/rotate
• bhrāmayet: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √bhram (धातु)
• Form: Causative (णिच्) base bhrāmay-, Optative/विधिलिङ्, Parasmaipada, 3rd Person, Singular

• pūrvavat: as previously
• pūrvavat: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: pūrvavat (अव्यय)
• Form: Adverb (तुल्यतावाचक): ‘as before’

• tena: by that/with that
• tena: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular; pronoun

• mārgeṇa: by the path/route
• mārgeṇa: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mārga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular

• sapta: seven
• sapta: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sapta (अव्यय/संख्याशब्द)
• Form: Numeral (संख्या), used adjectivally; indeclinable in form

• vījāni: seeds
• vījāni: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vīja (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Plural

• vāpayet: should cause to be sown / should sow
• vāpayet: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vap (धातु)
• Form: Causative (णिच्) base vāpay-, Optative/विधिलिङ्, Parasmaipada, 3rd Person, Singular

Speaker

Lord Agni (instructional narration typical of Agni Purana’s ritual chapters)

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Geographic Context

Type: Sacred-site

Sandhi Resolution Notes

Sandhi Resolution Notes: सूत्रमार्देण → sūtram ārdeṇa; ब्रह्मंस्तोयधाराञ्च → brahman toya-dhārāḥ ca (anusvāra/orthography normalized); पूर्ववत्तेन → pūrvavat tena.

Characters & Entities

• Brahman (priest)

FAQs

What technical or ritual knowledge (Vidya) is imparted in this verse?

It teaches a precise kalpa-step: marking/defining a ritual course using a wet thread and circling a water-stream along it, then sowing seven ritual seeds on the same prescribed track.

How does this verse contribute to the 'Encyclopedic' nature of the Agni Purana?

It preserves practical, procedural ritual technology (kalpa)—minute operational steps (thread, water-circling, measured sowing) that complement the text’s broader coverage of worship, consecration, and applied religious rites.

What is the spiritual or karmic significance of this specific instruction?

The controlled circling with water and orderly sowing symbolize purification and auspicious establishment (saṁsthāpanā) of the rite, aligning the act with prescribed order (vidhi) to secure merit and ritual efficacy.