Shloka 32

Determining Rites for Difficult/Inauspicious Deaths; Annual and Daily Śrāddha Rules

Devanagari script

मातृश्राद्धे तु विप्राणामभावे सुकुलोद्गताः / पतिपुत्रान्विताः साध्व्यो योषितो ऽष्टौ च भावयेत्

Transliteration

mātṛśrāddhe tu viprāṇāmabhāve sukulodgatāḥ / patiputrānvitāḥ sādhvyo yoṣito 'ṣṭau ca bhāvayet

Translation

Beim Śrāddha für die Mutter soll man, wenn keine Brāhmaṇas verfügbar sind, stattdessen acht tugendhafte Frauen aus guter Familie einsetzen—die mit ihrem Gatten leben und Söhne haben—als geeignete Vertreterinnen des Ritus.

Word by Word

• मातृश्राद्धे: in the mother’s śrāddha
• मातृश्राद्धे: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मातृ-श्राद्ध (प्रातिपदिक; मातृ + श्राद्ध)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (मातुः श्राद्धे)

• तु: however/indeed
• तु: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/वाक्यसम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle)

• विप्राणाम्: of brāhmaṇas
• विप्राणाम्: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विप्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6), बहुवचन

• अभावे: in (their) absence
• अभावे: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अभाव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7), एकवचन; कारण/स्थितिवाचक (in the absence)

• सुकुलोद्गताः: (those) sprung from good families
• सुकुलोद्गताः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सु-कुल-उद्गत (प्रातिपदिक; सु + कुल + उद्गत)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), बहुवचन; ‘उद्गत’ = क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past participle) धातु: उद्+गम्; विशेषण (well-born/come from good family)

• पति: husband
• पति: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; समासाङ्ग (compound member)

• पुत्र: son
• पुत्र: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुत्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; समासाङ्ग (compound member)

• अन्विताः: accompanied by/endowed with
• अन्विताः: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अन्वित (प्रातिपदिक; √इ (धातु) + अनु- + क्त)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), बहुवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past participle) ‘endowed/associated with’

• साध्व्यः: virtuous women
• साध्व्यः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: साध्वी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), बहुवचन

• योषितः: women
• योषितः: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: योषित् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), बहुवचन

• अष्टौ: eight
• अष्टौ: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अष्टन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1), बहुवचन; संख्यावाचक-विशेषण (numeral adjective)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/वाक्यसम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक (and)

• भावयेत्: should appoint/consider (as substitutes)
• भावयेत्: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (optative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; परस्मैपद; causative sense ‘to cause to be/appoint/consider’ (भावयति)

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (in discourse to Garuda/Vainateya)

Shraddha Ritual

Beneficiary: Mata

Timing: Mātṛ-śrāddha occasion (as prescribed in śrāddha calendar/necessity)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Apaddharma-like accommodation: when qualified brāhmaṇas are unavailable, the rite may proceed with specified virtuous women as representatives.

Vedantic Theme: Karma as niyama (ordered action) sustaining ṛta/dharma; intention and prescribed procedure preserve efficacy.

Application: If proper officiants are unavailable, follow authorized substitutions rather than abandoning ancestral rites; prioritize eligibility, purity, and prescribed number/qualities.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: karuna

Geographic Context

Type: household/ritual space

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana 2.45 (Śrāddha-vidhi context: eligibility, substitutes, procedure)

Characters & Entities

• Brāhmaṇas
• Mother (Mātṛ)
• Sādhvī women

FAQs

What is the importance of mātṛ-śrāddha in the Garuda Purana?

This verse treats the mother’s śrāddha as a distinct, duty-bound rite and clarifies how it should still be performed even under practical constraints, preserving dharma and continuity of ancestral offerings.

How does this verse guide śrāddha performance when brāhmaṇas are not available?

It explicitly provides a substitution: eight respectable, virtuous women of good lineage, described as living with husband and having sons, may be engaged as appropriate participants/recipients for the mother’s śrāddha.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

If ideal ritual conditions are not possible, the verse emphasizes completing the duty with qualified, ethical substitutes rather than abandoning the rite—prioritizing sincerity, propriety, and continuity of remembrance.