Shloka 29

Yama-mārga (Adhvan) and the Courts of Yama: Vaivasvatī and Chitragupta

Devanagari script

दशाष्टदोषरहितं कृत कर्म लिखत्यसौ / चित्रगुप्तालयात् आच्यां ज्वरस्यास्ति महागृहम्

Transliteration

daśāṣṭadoṣarahitaṃ kṛta karma likhatyasau / citraguptālayāt ācyāṃ jvarasyāsti mahāgṛham

Translation

Frei von den achtzehn Makeln schreibt er (Chitragupta) die vollbrachten Taten nieder. Nahe der Wohnstatt Chitraguptas steht das große Haus des Jvara, des Fiebers.

Word by Word

• daśāṣṭa-doṣa-rahitam: free from the eighteen faults
• daśāṣṭa-doṣa-rahitam: Karma (Object-qualifier/कर्म-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: daśa (दश) + aṣṭa (अष्ट) + doṣa (दोष प्रातिपदिक) + rahita (रहित प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समास: तत्पुरुष (दशाष्टदोषैः रहितम्); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; विशेषण (कर्म)

• kṛtam: done/performed
• kṛtam: Karma (Object-qualifier/कर्म-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kṛ (कृ धातु) → kṛta (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; विशेषण (कर्म)

• karma: deed
• karma: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: karman (कर्मन् प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• likhati: writes/records
• likhati: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: likh (लिख् धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन

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

• citragupta-ālayāt: from the abode of Citragupta
• citragupta-ālayāt: Apadana (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: citragupta (चित्रगुप्त प्रातिपदिक) + ālaya (आलय प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समास: तत्पुरुष (चित्रगुप्तस्य आलयः); पुंलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th), एकवचन; अपादान (from)

• ācyām: in the (place called) Ācyā
• ācyām: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ācya (आच्य प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन; अधिकरण (in/at)

• jvarasya: of fever
• jvarasya: Shashthi-Sambandha (Genitive/षष्ठी-सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jvara (ज्वर प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), एकवचन; सम्बन्ध

• asti: there is
• asti: Kriya (Existence/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: as (अस् धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन

• mahā-gṛham: a great house
• mahā-gṛham: Karta (Subject-complement/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā (महा) + gṛha (गृह प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: समास: कर्मधारय (महद् गृहं); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (narrating to Garuda/Vinata-putra)

Pretakalpa Layer

Afterlife Stage: Yamaloka Journey

Medical Ayurveda

Dosha: Pitta

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Citragupta, free from the eighteen faults, accurately records performed actions; cosmic justice is meticulous and impartial.

Vedantic Theme: Ṛta/dharma as an impersonal order; the inevitability of karmic audit (karmāṇi likhyante) supporting ethical restraint.

Application: Live as if every act is accountable; reduce the ‘eighteen faults’ (doṣa) such as partiality, negligence, anger, greed, etc., in one’s own judgments and record-keeping.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: bhayanaka

Secondary Rasa: adbhuta

Geographic Context

Type: court/abode (ālaya) and adjacent great house (mahāgṛha)

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana Pretakalpa: descriptions of Citragupta, his scribal function, and Yama’s court (2.33 context); Garuda Purana: lists of doṣas/qualities of dharma-administrators in related passages

Characters & Entities

• Chitragupta
• Jvara

FAQs

What is the importance of Chitragupta in the Garuda Purana?

This verse presents Chitragupta as the impartial scribe who records every performed karma without error, forming the basis for Yama’s judgment.

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

It situates the soul’s post-death journey within Yama’s administrative order: deeds are documented by Chitragupta, and the route includes fearful domains such as the ‘house of Jvara,’ indicating suffering that can accompany sinful karma.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Live with accountability—act ethically and avoid harmful deeds—because the tradition frames karma as precisely recorded and consequential, shaping one’s experience after death.