Shloka 3

The Preta’s Staged Journey to Yama’s City: Monthly Śrāddha Supports, Vaitaraṇī Crossing, and the Witnesses of Deeds

Devanagari script

तस्मिन्पुरवरे रम्ये प्रेतानां च गणो महान् / पुष्पभद्रा नदी तत्रन्यग्रोधः प्रियदर्शनः

Transliteration

tasminpuravare ramye pretānāṃ ca gaṇo mahān / puṣpabhadrā nadī tatranyagrodhaḥ priyadarśanaḥ

Translation

في تلك المدينة البهيّة الفاضلة يوجد أيضًا جمعٌ عظيم من البريتا. وهناك يجري نهر «بُشْپَبهَدرا» (Puṣpabhadrā)، وتقوم شجرة «نياغرودها» (البانيان) محبّبةً للنظر.

Word by Word

• तस्मिन्: in that
• तस्मिन्: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: सर्वनाम, सप्तमी (7), एकवचन; पुं/नपुंसक

• पुरवरे: in the excellent city
• पुरवरे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुर + वर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7), एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (श्रेष्ठं पुरम्)

• रम्ये: pleasant/beautiful
• रम्ये: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: रम्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7), एकवचन; ‘पुरवरे’ इत्यस्य विशेषणम्

• प्रेतानाम्: of the pretas
• प्रेतानाम्: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रेत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6), बहुवचन

• च: and
• च: Samuccaya (Connector/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयबोधक

• गणः: a group
• गणः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन

• महान्: great
• महान्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: महत् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; ‘गणः’ इत्यस्य विशेषणम्

• पुष्पभद्रा: Puṣpabhadrā (river name)
• पुष्पभद्रा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुष्प + भद्रा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; नदी-नाम

• नदी: river
• नदी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नदी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; ‘पुष्पभद्रा’ इत्यस्य अप्पोजिशन

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Desha-adhikarana (Place/देशाधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (locative adverb: there)

• न्यग्रोधः: a banyan tree
• न्यग्रोधः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: न्यग्रोध (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन

• प्रियदर्शनः: pleasant to behold
• प्रियदर्शनः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्रिय + दर्शन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), एकवचन; बहुव्रीहिः (यस्य दर्शनं प्रियम्)

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (narrating to Garuda)

Pretakalpa Layer

Afterlife Stage: Yamaloka Journey

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: The afterlife realm is structured and populated; the preta condition is communal and ordered, not annihilation.

Vedantic Theme: Continuity of experience in subtle realms; the cosmos contains graded lokas where karma ripens.

Application: Contemplate impermanence and the vast moral cosmos; let this reduce arrogance and increase dharmic living.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Geographic Context

Type: city, river, sacred tree

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana Pretakalpa: descriptions of Yama’s city, assemblies of pretas, and landscape features (rivers/trees as stations)

Characters & Entities

• Pretas
• Puṣpabhadrā (river)
• Nyagrodha (banyan tree)

FAQs

What is the importance of describing rivers and trees on the preta-path in the Garuda Purana?

This verse maps recognizable landmarks of the post-death journey, emphasizing that the preta-state is an ordered realm with specific locales, not a vague abstraction.

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

By mentioning a city populated by pretas and naming its river and banyan tree, the text portrays the soul’s intermediate condition as moving through defined regions associated with the preta community.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

It encourages mindful performance of death rites (e.g., śrāddha, piṇḍa-dāna) and ethical living, since the Purana frames the after-death experience as consequential and structured.