Skandapurana 3.2.7.79.5

3.2.7.79.5

dhanyā sā jananī loke dhanyo'sau janakaḥ punaḥ .. 57 ..
dhanyaḥ sa ca patiḥ śrīmānyeṣāṃ gehe pativratā ..
pitṛvaṃśyā mātṛvaṃśyāḥ pativaṃśyāstrayastrayaḥ ..
pativratāyāḥ puṇyena svargasaukhyāni bhuṃjate .. 58 ..
śīlabhaṃgena durvṛttāḥ pātayaṃti kulatrayam ..
piturmātustathā patyurihāramutra ca duḥkhitāḥ .. 59 ..
pativratāyāścaraṇo yatrayatra spṛśedbhuvam ..
sā tīrthabhūmirmmānyeti nātra bhāro'sti pāvanaḥ .. 3.2.7.60 ..
bibhyatpativratāsparśaṃ kurute bhānumānapi ..
somo gandharva evāpi svapāvitryāya nānyathā .. 61 ..
āpaḥ pativratāsparśamabhilaṣyaṃti sarvadā ..
gāyatryāghavināśo no pātivratyena sā'ghanut .. 62 ..
gṛhegṛhe na kiṃ nāryyo rūpalāvaṇyagarvitāḥ ..
paraṃ viśveśabhaktyaiva labhyate strī pati vratā .. 63 ..
bhāryā mūlaṃ gṛhasthasya bhāryā mūlaṃ sukhasya ca ..
bhāryā dharmaphalāyaiva bhāryā saṃtānavṛddhaye .. 64 ..
paralokastvayaṃ loko jīyate bhāryayā dvayam ..
devapitratithīnāṃ ca tṛptiḥ syādbhāryayā gṛhe ..
gṛhasthaḥ sa tu vijñeyo gṛhe yasya pativratā .. 65 ..
yathā gaṃgāvagāhena śarīraṃ pāvanaṃ bhavet ..
tathā pativratāṃ dṛṣṭvā sadanaṃ pāvanaṃ bhavet .. 66 ..
paryaṃkaśāyinī nārī vidhavā pātayetpatim..
tasmādbhūśayanaṃ kāryyaṃ patisaukhyasamīhayā .. 67 ..
naivāṃgodvarttanaṃ kāryyaṃ striyā vidhavayā kvacit ..
gandhadravyasya saṃbhogo naiva kāryyastayā kvacit .. 68 ..
tarppaṇaṃ pratyahaṃ kāryaṃ bhartuḥ kuśatilodakaiḥ..
tatpitustatpituścāpi nāmagotrādipūrvakam .. 69 ..
viṣṇoḥ saṃpūjanaṃ kāryaṃ patibuddhyā na cānyathā .. ..

Blessed is that mother in the world, and blessed indeed is that father, / and blessed is that fortunate husband in whose house there is a devoted wife. / Three ancestral lines on the father's side, three on the mother's side, and three on the husband's side / enjoy heavenly delights through the merit of a devoted wife. / But wicked women, through breach of virtue, bring down the three families; / causing sorrow here and in the next world to father, mother, and husband. / Wherever the foot of a devoted wife touches the ground, / that place of a sacred ford is to be revered; there is no greater purifier than this. / Even the Sun, out of awe, touches the devoted wife; / Soma and the Gandharva do so too, only for their own purification, not otherwise. / The waters constantly long for the touch of a devoted wife. / Destruction of sins does not come merely by the Gāyatrī; she destroys sins through her devotion to her husband. / Are there not in every house women proud of their beauty and charm? / But a devoted wife is obtained only through devotion to the Lord of the Universe. / The wife is the root of the householder, the wife is the root of happiness; / the wife is indeed for the fruit of dharma, the wife is for the increase of offspring. / Both worlds, the other world and this world, are conquered through a wife; / and the satisfaction of gods, ancestors, and guests in the house comes through a wife. / He alone should be known as a householder in whose house is a devoted wife. / Just as the body becomes purified by plunging into the Gaṅgā, / so a house becomes purified by seeing a devoted wife. / A widow sleeping on a bed causes her husband to fall; / therefore sleeping on the ground should be practiced, desiring the husband's happiness. / Anointing the limbs with ointments should never be done by a widow; / she should never enjoy fragrant substances. / A daily tarpaṇa should be made for her husband with water, kuśa grass, and sesame seeds, / as well as for his father and his grandfather, reciting their names, gotras, and so forth. / Worship of Viṣṇu should be performed with the thought that he is her husband, and not otherwise.