Shloka 3

Sūtaka-Nirṇaya: Causes, Duration, Exceptions, and Purification Protocols

Devanagari script

उभयत्र दशाहानि कुलस्यान्नं विवर्जियेत् / दानं प्रतिग्रहो होमः स्वाध्यायश्च निवर्तते

Transliteration

ubhayatra daśāhāni kulasyānnaṃ vivarjiyet / dānaṃ pratigraho homaḥ svādhyāyaśca nivartate

Translation

في كلتا الحالتين، ينبغي الامتناع عشرة أيام عن طعام الأسرة المطبوخ؛ وخلال تلك المدة تُعلَّق الصدقة (دانا)، وقبول الهبات، وقربان النار (هوما)، وتلاوةُ ودراسةُ الفيدا (سفادهيایا).

Word by Word

• ubhayatra: in both cases
• ubhayatra: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ubhaya (प्रातिपदिक) + tra (अव्यय-प्रत्यय)
• Form: Avyaya (अव्यय); adverb (क्रियाविशेषण) ‘in both cases/places’

• daśa-ahāni: for ten days
• daśa-ahāni: Kāla-adhikaraṇa (काल-अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: daśa (प्रातिपदिक) + ahan (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Accusative (द्वितीया/2), Plural (बहुवचन); द्विगु: ‘ten days’ used as duration

• kulasya: of the family
• kulasya: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kula (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Genitive (षष्ठी/6), Singular (एकवचन)

• annam: food
• annam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: anna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Accusative (द्वितीया/2), Singular (एकवचन)

• vivarjiyet: should avoid
• vivarjiyet: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi-√vṛj (धातु)
• Form: Optative (विधिलिङ्), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन), Parasmaipada (परस्मैपद)

• dānam: giving (charity)
• dānam: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dāna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा/1), Singular (एकवचन)

• pratigrahaḥ: accepting (gifts)
• pratigrahaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prati-graha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा/1), Singular (एकवचन)

• homaḥ: fire-offering
• homaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: homa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा/1), Singular (एकवचन)

• svādhyāyaḥ: self-study (Vedic recitation)
• svādhyāyaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: svādhyāya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा/1), Singular (एकवचन)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya (अव्यय); conjunction (समुच्चय)

• nivartate: ceases; is suspended
• nivartate: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ni-√vṛt (धातु)
• Form: Present (लट्), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन), Ātmanepada (आत्मनेपद)

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (in dialogue with Garuda)

Shraddha Ritual

Ritual Type: Ekoddishta

Beneficiary: Pitr

Timing: Ten-day aśauca window (daśāha) during which certain rites are suspended.

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: During aśauca, certain acts (dāna, pratigraha, homa, svādhyāya) are paused; food discipline preserves ritual order.

Vedantic Theme: Adhikāra (eligibility) for sacred acts depends on śauca; dharma regulates conduct to support inner sattva.

Application: Observe the prescribed ten-day abstention from family-cooked food and pause formal ritual/recitation until purification is complete.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Geographic Context

Type: household

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana (Preta/Śrāddha sections): aśauca and śrāddha eligibility rules; Garuda Purana: duties of survivors during impurity period

Characters & Entities

• Garuda
• Vishnu

FAQs

What is the importance of the ten-day period (daśāha) in Garuda Purana death rituals?

This verse states that for ten days certain dharmic acts—charity, accepting gifts, homa, and Vedic study—are paused, and the family’s cooked food is avoided, marking a defined mourning/impurity observance.

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

Indirectly, it sets the ritual and ethical boundaries for the living during the immediate post-death period, a time understood in the Preta Kanda as critical for orderly rites that support the departed’s transition.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Observe a focused mourning discipline: simplify daily religious routines as prescribed, avoid formal donations/acceptance and major ritual performances, and prioritize the appropriate post-death rites and family restraint for the stated period.