Garuda Purana — Preta Kalpa, Shloka 19

Akalamṛtyu-kāraṇa and Bāla Antyeṣṭi: Age-graded Funeral Rites, Śrāddha Types, and Sonship Duties

Devanagari script

वृषोत्सर्गादिकं कर्म सपिण्डीकरणं विना / द्वादशे हनि सम्प्राप्ते कुर्याच्छ्राद्धानि षोडश

Transliteration

vṛṣotsargādikaṃ karma sapiṇḍīkaraṇaṃ vinā / dvādaśe hani samprāpte kuryācchrāddhāni ṣoḍaśa

Translation

وإن لم يُؤدَّ طقسُ سَپِنْدِيكَرَنَة (sapiṇḍīkaraṇa)، فليُقَمْ مع ذلك ما شابهه من الأعمال كـڤْرِشوتسَرْگَة (vṛṣotsarga) ونحوها؛ فإذا حلَّ اليومُ الثاني عشر فليُؤدَّ ستَّ عشرةَ قُربانةِ شرادها (śrāddha).

Word by Word

• वृषोत्सर्गादिकम्: such as the bull-release rite and others
• वृषोत्सर्गादिकम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वृषोत्सर्ग + आदि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; विशेषण (qualifier)

• कर्म: rite, act
• कर्म: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कर्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन

• सपिण्डीकरणम्: the sapiṇḍīkaraṇa rite (joining to the ancestral group)
• सपिण्डीकरणम्: Apadana (Ablative sense via vinā/अपादानार्थ)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सपिण्डीकरण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), एकवचन

• विना: without
• विना: Apadana (Separation/अपादान)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: विना (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; उपसर्गसदृश-निपात (preposition/particle) = 'without'

• द्वादशे: on the twelfth
• द्वादशे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: द्वादश (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7), एकवचन; विशेषण (locative qualifier)

• हनि: day
• हनि: Adhikarana (Time/कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अहन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7), एकवचन

• सम्प्राप्ते: when (it) has arrived
• सम्प्राप्ते: Adhikarana (Locative absolute/सप्तमी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सम् + प्र + आप् (धातु) → सम्प्राप्त (कृदन्त, क्त)
• Form: सप्तमी (7), एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकृदन्त; (locative absolute sense)

• कुर्यात्: should perform
• कुर्यात्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (optative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• श्राद्धानि: śrāddha rites
• श्राद्धानि: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: श्राद्ध (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), बहुवचन

• षोडश: sixteen
• षोडश: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: षोडश (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययवत् संख्या; विशेषण (numeral qualifier)

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (in instruction to Garuda/Vinata-putra)

Pretakalpa Layer

Afterlife Stage: Pretayoni

Shraddha Ritual

Ritual Type: Ekoddishta

Beneficiary: Pitr

Timing: Dvādaśāha (12th day after death); prior rites like sapiṇḍīkaraṇa noted as prerequisite/sequence marker.

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Post-funeral obligations must be performed in correct sequence; dvādaśāha marks a key transition requiring prescribed śrāddhas.

Vedantic Theme: Kartavya-karma as purifier and as support for orderly saṃskāra leading the jīva onward; honoring ṛṇa (ancestral debt).

Application: Ensure sapiṇḍīkaraṇa is not omitted; on the 12th day perform the prescribed set of śrāddhas and associated rites like vṛṣotsarga as per family śākhā and capacity.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: karuna

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana Pretakalpa: dvādaśāha/ekoddiṣṭa/sapiṇḍīkaraṇa sequences (adjacent adhyāyas in 2.25); Garuda Purana: śrāddha-vidhi sections describing piṇḍa, udaka, dāna, and brāhmaṇa-bhojana

Characters & Entities

• Pitris
• Preta

FAQs

What is the importance of performing śrāddha on the twelfth day in the Garuda Purana?

This verse prescribes that once the twelfth day is reached, śrāddha rites should be performed—here specified as sixteen—marking a key step in the post-death ritual sequence.

What does this verse indicate about sapiṇḍīkaraṇa in relation to other rites like vṛṣotsarga?

It states that rites beginning with vṛṣotsarga are to be performed even without (i.e., prior to or apart from) sapiṇḍīkaraṇa, showing a structured ordering of obligations in the preta-kriyā context.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

If following traditional observances, consult a qualified priest/family tradition to schedule the twelfth-day śrāddha and associated rites, ensuring the sequence and counts (like the “sixteen śrāddhas”) align with your sampradāya.