Shloka 108

Devanagari script

तथा तलातलञ्चोरौ गुह्यदेशे रसातलम् / पातालं कटिसंस्थन्तु पादादौ लक्षयेद्बुधः

Transliteration

tathā talātalañcorau guhyadeśe rasātalam / pātālaṃ kaṭisaṃsthantu pādādau lakṣayedbudhaḥ

Translation

Likewise, the wise should know Talātala in the thighs, Rasātala in the secret (genital) region, and Pātāla as established at the hips—thus discerning these nether realms as mapped upon the lower parts of the body.

Word by Word

• तथा: thus; likewise
• तथा: Sambandha (Discourse connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकार/समुच्चयार्थक (adverb/conjunctive: 'thus/likewise')

• तलातलम्: Talātala (a nether world)
• तलातलम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तलातल (प्रातिपदिक; तल + अतल)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (कर्म) एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (तलस्य अतलम् इति)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयबोधक (conjunction 'and')

• ऊरौ: in the thigh
• ऊरौ: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ऊरु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; सप्तमी (अधिकरण) एकवचन (locative singular)

• गुह्यदेशे: in the genital region
• गुह्यदेशे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गुह्य-देश (प्रातिपदिक; गुह्य + देश)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; सप्तमी (अधिकरण) एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारय (गुह्यः देशः)

• रसातलम्: Rasātala (a nether world)
• रसातलम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रसातल (प्रातिपदिक; रस + अतल)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (कर्म) एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (रसस्य अतलम् इति)

• पातालम्: Pātāla (nether region)
• पातालम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पाताल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया (कर्म) एकवचन

• कटि-संस्थम्: situated at the waist
• कटि-संस्थम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कटि + संस्थ (√स्था धातु; क्त participle 'स्थित/संस्थ')
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग; द्वितीया एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (past participle) 'situated'; समासः—तत्पुरुष (कटौ संस्थम्)

• तु: indeed; but
• तु: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारण/विरोधार्थक (particle 'but/indeed')

• पाद-आदौ: beginning from the feet
• पाद-आदौ: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पाद + आदि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; सप्तमी (अधिकरण) एकवचन; समासः—अव्ययीभाव (पादादौ = पादे आदौ/पादादिषु 'starting from the feet')

• लक्षयेत्: should mark/identify
• लक्षयेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √लक्ष् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (optative); परस्मैपद; प्रथमपुरुष; एकवचन

• बुधः: the wise person
• बुधः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: बुध (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग; प्रथमा (कर्ता) एकवचन

Speaker

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

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Microcosm–macrocosm correspondence (piṇḍa–brahmāṇḍa) applied to the fourteen-world schema, beginning with the lower lokas.

Vedantic Theme: Adhyāropa-apavāda style cosmography: using structured superimposition to guide inward knowledge; body as a field for contemplative insight.

Application: Use as a visualization in dhyāna: locate the adholokas in lower-body awareness to stabilize attention and cultivate detachment from gross identification.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Geographic Context

Type: cosmological realm (adholoka) mapped to bodily regions

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana 2.32.109; Garuda Purana 2.32.110 (completion of lokas-in-body mapping)

Characters & Entities

• Talatala
• Rasatala
• Patala

FAQs

What is the importance of mapping Talatala, Rasatala, and Patala onto the body in the Garuda Purana?

This verse teaches a microcosm–macrocosm view: cosmic regions (netherworlds) are contemplated as present within the human body, aiding meditative and doctrinal understanding of creation and embodiment.

How does this verse relate to the Garuda Purana’s teachings on the soul and afterlife?

In the Preta Kanda, understanding the body’s layered structure supports broader teachings on the subtle body and post-death experience; here it frames embodiment as a structured cosmos rather than a random physical form.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Use it as a contemplative reminder that actions affecting the body and senses have cosmic and ethical significance—encouraging restraint, purity, and disciplined living.