Shloka 114

Multi-form Manifestations, Indra–Kāma Incarnations, Pravāha, and the Twofold Buddhi

Sense-Discipline and Exclusive Refuge in Viṣṇu

Devanagari script

यदा पते यमदूतैश्च पाशैर्बद्ध्वा च सम्यक् ताड्यमानः कशाभिः / तदा स्कन्दः कुत्र पलायते ऽसावतो मूलं विष्णुपादं भजस्व

Transliteration

yadā pate yamadūtaiśca pāśairbaddhvā ca samyak tāḍyamānaḥ kaśābhiḥ / tadā skandaḥ kutra palāyate 'sāvato mūlaṃ viṣṇupādaṃ bhajasva

Translation

عندما تقع في أيدي رسل ياما - مقيدًا بإحكام بالحبال ومضروبًا مرارًا وتكرارًا بالسياط - إلى أين سيركض سكاندا (Skanda) لحمايتك؟ لذلك، التجئ إلى الأصل الحقيقي: قدمي فيشنو.

Word by Word

• yadā: when
• yadā: Kāla (काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yadā (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक अव्यय

• pate: O lord
• pate: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pati (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, एकवचन

• yamadūtaiḥ: by Yama's messengers
• yamadūtaiḥ: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yama-dūta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, बहुवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (यमस्य दूताः)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय

• pāśaiḥ: with nooses
• pāśaiḥ: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pāśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, बहुवचन

• baddhvā: having bound
• baddhvā: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √bandh (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त (absolutive/gerund), अव्ययभाव

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय

• samyak: properly
• samyak: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: samyak (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, क्रियाविशेषण

• tāḍyamānaḥ: being beaten
• tāḍyamānaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: √tāḍ (धातु)
• Form: वर्तमानकाले कर्मणि कृदन्त (present passive participle) मान; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्तृ/विषयस्य (त्वम्) विशेषण

• kaśābhiḥ: with whips
• kaśābhiḥ: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kaśā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया, बहुवचन

• tadā: then
• tadā: Kāla (काल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tadā (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक अव्यय

• skandaḥ: Skanda
• skandaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: skanda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• kutra: where
• kutra: Deśa (देश)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kutra (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रश्नवाचक अव्यय (place)

• palāyate: runs away
• palāyate: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: palāy (धातु)
• Form: लट्, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद

• asau: that (he)
• asau: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: adas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• ataḥ: therefore
• ataḥ: Hetu (हेतु)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ataḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, हेत्वर्थ (therefore)

• mūlam: the root/foundation
• mūlam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mūla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• viṣṇupādam: Viṣṇu's feet
• viṣṇupādam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viṣṇu + pāda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (विष्णोः पादः)

• bhajasva: worship/seek refuge
• bhajasva: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √bhaj (धातु)
• Form: लोट्, मध्यमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपद

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (in instruction to Garuda/Vinata-putra, as part of the Preta Kanda discourse)

Pretakalpa Layer

Afterlife Stage: Yamaloka Journey

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: In the face of Yamadūta enforcement, reliance on other deities as protectors is portrayed as ineffective; take refuge in Viṣṇu’s feet as mūla-āśraya.

Vedantic Theme: Ekatva-niṣṭhā in the Supreme; śaraṇāgati transcending fear; subordination of all powers to the Absolute.

Application: Center devotion and ethics now; cultivate remembrance of Viṣṇu so that at crisis (death) the mind has a stable refuge.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: bhayanaka

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Geographic Context

Type: liminal passage to judgment

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana: Viṣṇu as protector from Yamadūtas (general motif); Garuda Purana Pretakalpa: pāśa-bandhana and daṇḍa imagery (general)

Characters & Entities

• Yamadutas
• Yama
• Skanda
• Vishnu

FAQs

What is the importance of taking refuge in Vishnu’s feet in the Garuda Purana?

This verse states that when karmic retribution manifests through Yama’s agents, worldly or even other divine associations cannot serve as reliable protection; the “root” refuge is surrender to Vishnu (viṣṇupāda).

How does this verse explain the path of the soul after death?

It portrays the post-death accountability phase where the bound and punished being is seized by Yamadutas, emphasizing that the soul’s fate is driven by karma unless one has the saving refuge of Vishnu-bhakti.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Live ethically to reduce harmful karma, and cultivate steady devotion (bhajana/śaraṇāgati) to Vishnu as a spiritual anchor beyond fear, especially in reflections on death and afterlife.