Shloka 30

Mukti-tattva Upadeśa: Knowledge as the Direct Cause of Liberation

Devanagari script

शतं जीवितमत्यल्पं निद्रालस्यैस्तदर्धकम् / बाल्यरोगजरादुः खैरल्पं तदपि निष्फलम्

Transliteration

śataṃ jīvitamatyalpaṃ nidrālasyaistadardhakam / bālyarogajarāduḥ khairalpaṃ tadapi niṣphalam

Translation

Selbst hundert Lebensjahre sind äußerst wenig; die Hälfte wird von Schlaf und Trägheit verzehrt. Vom Rest lassen Kindheit, Krankheit, Alter und Kummer nur wenig übrig—und selbst dieses Wenige wird fruchtlos.

Word by Word

• śatam: a hundred (years)
• śatam: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन)

• jīvitam: life
• jīvitam: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jīvita (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन)

• ati-alpam: very little
• ati-alpam: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ati (अव्यय) + alpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन); avyayībhāva: ‘excessively small’

• nidrā-lasyaiḥ: by sleep and laziness
• nidrā-lasyaiḥ: Karana (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nidrā (प्रातिपदिक) + ālasya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Plural (बहुवचन); dvandva: ‘sleep and laziness’

• tat-ardhakam: half of that
• tat-ardhakam: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tat (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + ardhaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन); tatpuruṣa: ‘half of that’

• bālya-roga-jarā-duḥkhaiḥ: by childhood, disease, old age, and sorrows
• bālya-roga-jarā-duḥkhaiḥ: Karana (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bālya (प्रातिपदिक) + roga (प्रातिपदिक) + jarā (प्रातिपदिक) + duḥkha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Plural (बहुवचन); dvandva: ‘childhood, disease, old age, and sorrows’

• alpam: little
• alpam: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: alpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन)

• tat: that (remaining part)
• tat: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tat (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pronoun (सर्वनाम), Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन)

• api: even/also
• api: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: Particle (निपात-अव्यय): ‘also/even’

• niṣphalam: fruitless
• niṣphalam: Visheshana (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: niṣphala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular (एकवचन)

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (in instruction to Garuda/Vinata-putra)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Āyuḥ is short and largely lost to inertia and unavoidable conditions; therefore one should not postpone dharma and spiritual practice.

Vedantic Theme: Anityatā of the body and kāla’s devouring power; vairāgya as the doorway to mumukṣutva.

Application: Audit daily time-loss (sleep, distraction, laziness); establish fixed sādhana and dharmic duties early; prioritize what yields lasting benefit (śreyas) over transient pleasure (preyas).

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: karuna

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana (Preta-kalpa/ācāra sections): repeated exhortations on anityatā and urgency of dharma before death; Garuda Purana: teachings on the rarity of human birth and the need for Viṣṇu-smaraṇa at life’s end

Characters & Entities

• Garuda
• Vishnu

FAQs

What is the importance of reflecting on the shortness of life in the Garuda Purana?

This verse stresses that most of life is lost to sleep, laziness, and unavoidable suffering, urging a person to prioritize dharma and spiritual effort while time remains.

How does this verse connect to the Garuda Purana’s teachings on death and the afterlife?

By showing how little usable time humans truly have, it motivates timely preparation—right conduct, merit (puṇya), and remembrance of the Divine—before the soul faces the post-death journey described in the Preta Kanda.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Reduce wasted time, cultivate disciplined living, and use daily life for dharma—study, japa, charity, and ethical action—so the remaining years become meaningful rather than “fruitless.”