Garuda Purana — Moksha Sadhana Prakarana, Shloka 36
Gradations of Bliss and Knowledge; Lakṣmī’s Special Insight; The Rarity of Bhakti in Kali-yuga; Nīlā’s Vow and Śrīnivāsa Darśana
यद्भर्तारो हरिभक्ता न संति ताभिस्त्याज्यं स्वीयगात्रं भृशं हि / स्वभर्तृतं कृष्णरूपं हरिं च स्मृत्वा सम्यग् यदि गात्रं त्यजेयुः
yadbhartāro haribhaktā na saṃti tābhistyājyaṃ svīyagātraṃ bhṛśaṃ hi / svabhartṛtaṃ kṛṣṇarūpaṃ hariṃ ca smṛtvā samyag yadi gātraṃ tyajeyuḥ
যাদের স্বামী হরি-ভক্ত নন, সেই নারীদের উচিত নিজের দেহকে সম্পূর্ণরূপে ত্যাগ করা। যদি তারা সত্য স্বামী-রূপ শ্যাম কৃষ্ণ-হরিকে যথাযথ স্মরণ করে দেহত্যাগ করে, তবে তারা যথার্থ গতি লাভ করবে।
Lord Vishnu (teaching Garuda/Vinata-putra)
Concept: Antima-smṛti of Hari/Kṛṣṇa as the decisive means; radical renunciation of bodily identification when spiritual support is absent.
Vedantic Theme: Smaraṇa at death shaping gati; surrender to Bhagavān as the inner husband/lord (īśvara) beyond worldly relations.
Application: Prepare for death through daily nāma-smaraṇa; cultivate inner refuge in Hari so that remembrance is natural at life’s end.
Primary Rasa: karuna
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
Related Themes: Garuda Purana: frequent insistence on Viṣṇu-smaraṇa at death as salvific; Garuda Purana: teachings on the power of nāma and remembrance in the dying moment
FAQs
This verse emphasizes that right remembrance (samyak-smaraṇa) of Hari—specifically as Kṛṣṇa—at the moment of giving up the body is presented as a decisive spiritual support for attaining the proper end (liberating destination).
Rather than focusing on external rites, the verse highlights inner alignment: if consciousness is fixed on Hari as the true Lord while leaving the body, that remembrance directs the soul toward a higher, auspicious course.
Cultivate steady Vishnu/Krishna-bhakti and daily remembrance so that, in crisis or at life’s end, the mind naturally turns to Hari with clarity and devotion.