174 - Expiations for discontinuing the worship of gods 

Agni said:

1-3. (Ishall describe) the expiation for omission in the worship of gods and orders. Oneshould repeat one hundred and eight times and worship twice for omission in worship. After having made oblations with the five upanishadic sacred syllables brahminsshould be fed. Oneshould repeat hundred times if (the idol of) the deity has been touched by a woman who has delivered a child, a woman of the lowest caste and a woman in her courses. (Oneshould do) worship with the five upanishadic (sacred syllables) and two times bathing. When there is omission in the oblations brahminsshould be fed. (Then oneshould do) oblation, bathing and worship. 

4-5. When the materials for the oblation have been eaten by rats, etc., or abound with worms, that part aloneshould be rejected, sprinkled (with water) and the deities worshipped. When it is broken or damaged to the extent of a sprout itshould be rejected. When it has been touched by an untouchable itshould be transferred to another vessel 

6. If the sacred syllable or the materials get altered at the time of worship or in destroying the impediments due to the gods and mortals oneshould mutter the basic (syllable) and repeat again. 

7. (Oneshould) repeat one hundred times if the pot is lost. If (the image of) the deity has fallen from the hand and got broken or lost there will be welfare only after fasting and (doing) oblations hundred times. 

8. For a man who repents after doing a sin, the best expiation is to remember lord Hari. 

9. The practice of chândrāyana or paråka or prajapatya destroys the sin. The repetition of the sacred syllables of the Sun, Isa (lord Siva), Śakti (consort of lord Siva), Śrisa (lord Vishņu) and others would destroy the sin. 

10-11. The repetition of gayatri, pranava (om), hymns and sacred syllables destroy sins. The sacred syllables of the Sun, Išha, Sakti and Srisa beginning with the letters) 'ka' etc. and their basic syllables and ending with the respective letters are separately more than a crore. (The sacred syllables) such as om, hriṁ etc. and ending with (the name) in the fourth case and (the word) 'salutation' are capable of yielding all desires. 

12. The sacred syllables of (lord) Nrusimha (man-lion form of lord Vishņu) consisting of twelve and eight letters etc. destroy sin. The reading and hearing etc. of Agneyapurāņa (would also be expiation to remove all sins). 

13-16. Lord Vishņu is of two forms of Vidyā¹. He is praised in the form of fire. The supreme lord is praised in all scriptures as the face of the celestials. He is worshipped as the conferer of enjoyment and emancipation in taking active part in worldly life as well as in inactivity. The oblations, contemplation, worship, repetition (of sacred syllables), hymns and obeisance made to lord Vishņu of the form of Fire (god) would destroy sins relating to one's body. Making a gift of ten gold (things), twelve (kinds) of grains, sixteen great gifts such as making a gift of something equal to one's own weight and other great gifts such as giving food remove all sins. 

1. Vidya, knowledge, is of two kinds: apara and para, standing respectively for the vedas etc. and for the knowledge about supreme Brahman. 

17. Practising vows on the phases of the moon, weeks, asterisms, movement (of planets from one constellation to another), good periods of the day and period of Manu for the Sun, Išha, Sakti and others would destroy sins. 

18-19. The sacred places such as Ganges, Gaya, Prayaga, Kāśi, Ayodhya, Avantikā, Kurukshetra, Pushkara, Nai misha, Purushottama (Puri), Salagrama, Prabhasa and others also destroy sins. The contemplation that 'I am the brahman, the supreme effulgence' would destroy sins. 

20-24. The Brahmapurāna and the Agneyapuräna, (lords) Brahma, Vishņu, Maheśvara, the manifestations (of the god), all kinds of worship, the installation of the images (of deities) etc. (also remove one's sins). The science of astrology, Purāņas, codes of law, penance, vow, the science of politics, sarga¹ etc., the medical lore, the science of archery, phonetics, metrics, grammar, etymology, lexicon, manual of rituals, logic, mimāṁså (the science investigating the vedic texts) and all other things are the lord Hari (himself). The sins of others get destroyed by seeing one who has got the knowledge about the single lord without the second from which (all are produced) and in which (all repose) and who is everything. He is verily the lord Hari. Lord Hari remains in the form of eighteen vidyas². He is subtle and gross. He is the most supreme. He is the effulgence and the sentient, immutable, brahman, supreme, omni-present and blemishless. 

1. The primary and secondary creation, gencalogy of gods and sages, periods of Manus and accounts of royal genealogy. 

2. The four Vedas, the six accessory texts, minamsa, nydya, dharmasastra,  Purāṇa, dyurveda, dhanurveda, gandharvaveda and arthasastra.