Adhyaya 89: शौचाचारलक्षणम् — सदाचार, भैक्ष्यचर्या, प्रायश्चित्त, द्रव्यशुद्धि, आशौच-निर्णय
दशाहं सूतिकाशौचं मातुरप्येवमव्ययाः अर्वाक् त्रिवर्षात्स्नानेन बान्धवानां पितुः सदा
daśāhaṃ sūtikāśaucaṃ māturapyevamavyayāḥ arvāk trivarṣātsnānena bāndhavānāṃ pituḥ sadā
ولادت سے پیدا ہونے والا سوتک آشوچ دس دن رہتا ہے؛ ماں کے لیے بھی یہی حکم ہے۔ تین برس سے کم بچے کی پاکی غسل سے ہوتی ہے؛ اور باپ کے رشتہ داروں کے لیے بھی ہمیشہ یہی قاعدہ سمجھا جائے۔
Suta Goswami
It sets a dharmic boundary for resuming Shiva-puja after childbirth: observing sutika-āśauca (ten days) and using snāna as the purifier for very young children, so worship of Pati (Shiva) is done with proper niyama.
Indirectly, it implies Shiva as Pati—the ever-pure Lord—while the pashu (bound soul) follows disciplines of purity and restraint to remove pasha (ritual and mental taints) and return to ordered worship.
A purity observance (niyama) centered on āśauca and its cessation, with snāna (ritual bathing) as the key purificatory act—supporting the eligibility to perform Shiva-puja and related rites.