Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 7
Prāyaścitta for Mahāpātakas and the Sin-destroying Power of Viṣṇu-smaraṇa
अज्ञानाद्वाह्मणं हत्वा चीरवासा जटी भवेत् । स्वेनैव हतविप्रस्य कपालमपि धारयेत् ॥ ७ ॥
ajñānādvāhmaṇaṃ hatvā cīravāsā jaṭī bhavet | svenaiva hataviprasya kapālamapi dhārayet || 7 ||
Nếu vì vô minh mà đã giết một Bà-la-môn, người ấy nên mặc y phục bằng vỏ cây và để tóc bện rối; lại còn phải mang theo cả chiếc sọ của chính vị Bà-la-môn mà mình đã sát hại.
Sūta (narrating Purāṇic teaching on prāyaścitta; framed as Narada Purana instruction)
Vrata: none
Primary Rasa: karuna
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
FAQs
It emphasizes that even unintended grave harm (done in ignorance) requires deliberate purification through visible austerity and sustained penance, restoring moral order (dharma) through prāyaścitta.
Indirectly: it prepares the practitioner for sincere devotion by insisting on ethical accountability and inner purification; bhakti in the Purāṇic framework is strengthened when one removes the burden of major sins through prescribed atonement.
Kalpa (ritual procedure) is implied—this is a rule of prāyaścitta practice describing external marks (bark garments, matted hair) and a penitential observance used in Dharma-śāstra style ritual discipline.