Shloka 97

Āśauca, Daśāha Piṇḍa-Rites, Vṛṣotsarga, Sāpiṇḍīkaraṇa, and the Yama-mārga

Path to Yama

Devanagari script

अष्टादशोदिने तार्क्ष्य तत्पुर प्राप्नुयादसौ / पुष्पभद्रा नदी यत्र न्यग्रोधः प्रियदर्शनः

Transliteration

aṣṭādaśodine tārkṣya tatpura prāpnuyādasau / puṣpabhadrā nadī yatra nyagrodhaḥ priyadarśanaḥ

Translation

يا تاركشيا (غارودا)، في اليوم الثامن عشر يبلغ تلك المدينة؛ هناك نهر بوشبَبهَدرا، وتقوم شجرة النياجرودها (شجرة البانيان) بهيّة المنظر محبّبة للرؤية.

Word by Word

• aṣṭādaśa-udine: on the eighteenth day
• aṣṭādaśa-udine: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: aṣṭādaśa (प्रातिपदिक) + udina (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन; समासः—षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (aṣṭādaśasya udine)

• tārkṣya: O Tārkṣya (Garuda)
• tārkṣya: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tārkṣya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/सम्बोधन), एकवचन

• tat-puram: that city
• tat-puram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tat (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + pura (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारय/षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (tasya puram)

• prāpnuyāt: should reach
• prāpnuyāt: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √āp (धातु) उपसर्गः pra-
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• asau: he
• asau: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asau (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• puṣpabhadrā: Puṣpabhadrā (name)
• puṣpabhadrā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: puṣpa (प्रातिपदिक) + bhadrā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारय (puṣpā eva bhadrā)

• nadī: river
• nadī: Apposition (समानाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nadī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन

• yatra: where
• yatra: Adhikarana (Locative sense/अधिकरणार्थ)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yatra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; सम्बन्धबोधक-अव्यय (relative adverb: 'where')

• nyagrodhaḥ: banyan tree
• nyagrodhaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nyagrodha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन

• priyadarśanaḥ: pleasant to behold
• priyadarśanaḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: priya (प्रातिपदिक) + darśana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारय (priyaṃ darśanam yasya)

Speaker

Lord Vishnu

Pretakalpa Layer

Afterlife Stage: Yamaloka Journey

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: The after-death journey unfolds in ordered stages; the soul encounters fixed stations shaped by cosmic law.

Vedantic Theme: niyati (order) within saṃsāra; the jīva’s passage under karma’s governance

Application: Contemplate mortality and prepare through dharma and śrāddha so the journey is supported and not bewildering.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka

Geographic Context

Type: city-river-grove (waystation)

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana, Pretakalpa: descriptions of the preta’s day-by-day route and stations (tīrtha-like markers, rivers, trees); Garuda Purana: emphasis that offerings reach the preta at specific stages

Characters & Entities

• Garuda (Tarkshya)
• Preta (departed soul)
• Puṣpabhadrā River
• Nyagrodha (banyan tree)

FAQs

What is the importance of the eighteenth day in the Garuda Purana’s description of the after-death journey?

This verse marks a specific milestone: by the eighteenth day, the departed (preta) is said to reach a defined station (“that city”), indicating the Purana’s structured, day-counted mapping of the post-death route.

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

It presents the journey as a sequence of locations encountered over time, naming a city-like station and nearby landmarks (the Puṣpabhadrā river and a beautiful banyan), reinforcing that the preta’s route is described with concrete waypoints.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

It encourages timely performance of post-death rites with a sense of continuity and care, reminding families to observe prescribed day-based observances with steadiness and reverence.