Bhakti-Śraddhā-Ācāra-Māhātmya and the Commencement of the Mārkaṇḍeya Narrative
वेदान्तवेद्यं पुरुषं पुराणं हिरण्यगर्भादिजगत्स्वरुपम् । अनूपमं भक्ति जनानुकम्पिनं भजामि सर्वेश्वरमादिमीड्यम् ॥ ८५ ॥
vedāntavedyaṃ puruṣaṃ purāṇaṃ hiraṇyagarbhādijagatsvarupam | anūpamaṃ bhakti janānukampinaṃ bhajāmi sarveśvaramādimīḍyam || 85 ||
ข้าพเจ้าบูชาพระผู้เป็นเจ้าแห่งสรรพสิ่งผู้เป็นปฐมและควรสรรเสริญ ผู้รู้ได้ด้วยเวทานตะ เป็นบุรุษโบราณนิรันดร์ซึ่งสภาวะคือจักรวาลตั้งแต่หิรัณยครรภ์ เป็นต้นไป ผู้หาที่เปรียบมิได้ และทรงเมตตาต่อเหล่าภักตะ
Narada (in a devotional hymn within the teaching narrative)
Vrata: none
Primary Rasa: bhakti
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
It presents the Supreme Lord as the Vedānta-known Purusha—both transcendent and immanent as the cosmos—and emphasizes that His defining grace is compassion toward devotees, making devotion a direct means to liberation.
By highlighting the Lord as “bhakti-janānukampin” (merciful to devotees), it frames bhakti not merely as ritual performance but as a relationship of surrender and worship to the incomparable Lord who responds with grace.
The verse points to Vedānta (Upaniṣadic inquiry) as the pramāṇa for knowing the Supreme; it is more philosophical than technical, so it does not directly teach a Vedāṅga practice like Śikṣā or Jyotiṣa, but it anchors devotion in scriptural authority.