Shloka 147

Āśauca, Daśāha Piṇḍa-Rites, Vṛṣotsarga, Sāpiṇḍīkaraṇa, and the Yama-mārga

Path to Yama

Devanagari script

ततस्तत्राशु रक्ताक्षं भिन्नाञ्जनचयोपमम् / मृत्युकालान्तकादीनां मध्ये पश्यति वै यमम्

Transliteration

tatastatrāśu raktākṣaṃ bhinnāñjanacayopamam / mṛtyukālāntakādīnāṃ madhye paśyati vai yamam

Translation

Then, in that realm, he swiftly beholds Yama—red-eyed, like a heap of crushed añjana (collyrium)—standing amid Death, Time, the Ender, and other dread powers.

Word by Word

• tataḥ: thereafter
• tataḥ: Adhikarana (Context/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (क्रियाविशेषण) = 'ततः' (thereafter/from there)

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (देशवाचक क्रियाविशेषण) = 'तत्र' (there/in that place)

• āśu: quickly
• āśu: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial modifier)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: āśu (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (क्रियाविशेषण) = 'आशु' (quickly)

• raktākṣam: red-eyed (one)
• raktākṣam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: rakta (प्रातिपदिक) + akṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन; कर्मधारय-समास: रक्ताः अक्षी यस्य/रक्ताक्षः (red-eyed)

• bhinna: split
• bhinna: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bhid (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त (क्त-प्रत्यय, भिन्न), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; past passive participle = 'split/broken'

• añjana: collyrium/black pigment
• añjana: Samasa-anga (Compound member)
• Type: Noun
• Root: añjana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (सामान्यतः), प्रातिपदिक (collyrium/black pigment) — समासाङ्ग (compound member)

• caya: heap/mass
• caya: Samasa-anga (Compound member)
• Type: Noun
• Root: caya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रातिपदिक (heap/mass) — समासाङ्ग

• upamam: resembling (like)
• upamam: Karma (Object complement/कर्म-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: upama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास: भिन्न-अञ्जन-चय-उपमम् = 'like a heap of split collyrium'

• mṛtyu: death
• mṛtyu: Samasa-anga (Compound member)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mṛtyu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रातिपदिक — समासाङ्ग

• kāla: time
• kāla: Samasa-anga (Compound member)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रातिपदिक — समासाङ्ग

• antaka: ender/destroyer
• antaka: Samasa-anga (Compound member)
• Type: Noun
• Root: antaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रातिपदिक (ender/destroyer) — समासाङ्ग

• ādīnām: of ... and others
• ādīnām: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive relation)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ādi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), बहुवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास: मृत्युकालान्तक-आदीनाम् = 'of Death, Time, Antaka and others'

• madhye: in the midst
• madhye: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: madhya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/अधिकरण), एकवचन; 'in the midst'

• paśyati: sees
• paśyati: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dṛś (धातु)
• Form: लट् (वर्तमान), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; √दृश् = 'sees'

• vai: indeed
• vai: Nipata (Particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vai (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (निपात/पदार्थ-निश्चयार्थक) = 'indeed/verily'

• yamam: Yama
• yamam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (speaking to Garuda/Vainateya)

Pretakalpa Layer

Afterlife Stage: Yamaloka Journey

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Darshana of Yama as the embodiment of karmic law and inevitability of death/time.

Vedantic Theme: Karma-niyati and anityatva (impermanence) prompting vairagya (dispassion).

Application: Cultivate ethical living and remembrance of mortality; prepare through dharma and devotion to avoid fear at the time of reckoning.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: bhayanaka

Secondary Rasa: bibhatsa

Geographic Context

Type: court/assembly hall

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana, Pretakalpa: Yama-darshana and yamaduta descriptions (adjacent verses in 2.5); Garuda Purana: karma-gati allocation passages following Yama’s court scenes

Characters & Entities

• Yama
• Mrityu
• Kala
• Antaka

FAQs

What is the importance of seeing Yama in the Garuda Purana?

This verse marks the transition from mere post-death wandering to formal encounter with cosmic law: the departed being comes before Yama, the judge who administers karmic consequences with the support of powers like Time (Kāla) and Death (Mṛtyu).

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

It depicts a key stage in the preta’s journey: arriving at a fearsome domain where Yama is perceived in the midst of personified forces (Mṛtyu, Kāla, Antaka), indicating that the soul is now within the sphere of karmic adjudication.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Live with awareness of accountability—practice dharma, avoid harmful actions, and support righteous end-of-life and śrāddha observances, since the text emphasizes that one’s deeds culminate in an inevitable reckoning.