Adhyaya 21

Verse 1

इति श्रीकूर्मपुराणे षट्साहस्त्र्यां संहितायामुपरिविभागे विशो ऽध्यायः व्यास उवाच स्नात्वा यथोक्तं संतर्प्य पितॄंश्चन्द्रक्षये द्विजः / पिण्डान्वाहार्यकं श्राद्धं कुर्यात् सौम्यमनाः शुचिः

Thus, in the Śrī Kūrma Purāṇa, in the six-thousand-verse Saṃhitā, in the latter division, the twenty-first chapter. Vyāsa said: “Having bathed as prescribed and duly satisfied the Fathers, at the waning of the moon the twice-born should perform the āvāhāryaka śrāddha with piṇḍa-offerings—pure, with a gentle and composed mind.”

Verse 2

पूर्वमेव परीक्षेत ब्राह्मणं वेदपारगम् / तीर्थं तद् हव्यकव्यानां प्रदाने चातिथिः स्मृतः

One should first examine and ascertain a Brāhmaṇa who has mastered the Vedas. Such a person is deemed a tīrtha, a sacred ford for havya and kavya offerings to the gods and the ancestors; and in the act of giving, he is regarded as the true guest (atithi).

Verse 3

ये सोमपा विरजसो धर्मज्ञाः शान्तचेतसः / व्रतिनो नियमस्थाश्च ऋतुकालाभिगामिनः

Those who partake of Soma, who are free from the dust of passion, who know dharma and are tranquil-minded—votaries established in vows and disciplines, approaching their wives only in the proper season—such are the truly restrained.

Verse 4

पञ्चाग्निरप्यधीयानो यजुर्वेदविदेव च / बह्वृचश्च त्रिसौपर्णस्त्रिमधुर्वाथ यो भवेत्

Even if a man is a keeper of the five fires and devoted to Vedic study—knowing the Yajurveda, being a reciter of the Ṛgveda, and also versed in the three Sauparṇa texts and the three Madhu hymns—such a one is described here in terms of these Vedic qualifications.

Verse 5

त्रिणाचिकेतच्छन्दोगो ज्येष्ठसामग एव च / अथर्वशिरसो ऽध्येता रुद्राध्यायी विशेषतः

He should be a Chāndogya, well-versed in the Triṇāciketa (rite and hymn-cycle), and a chanter of the Jyeṣṭha-sāman; a student of the Atharvaśiras, and, above all, devoted to studying and reciting the Rudra-adhyāyas.

Verse 6

अग्निहोत्रपरो विद्वान् न्यायविच्च षडङ्गवित् / मन्त्रब्राह्मणविच्चैव यश्च स्याद् धर्मपाठकः

A learned man—devoted to the daily Agnihotra, skilled in Nyāya reasoning, versed in the six Vedāṅgas, and knowledgeable in both Vedic mantras and the Brāhmaṇa portions—such a one is fit to teach and recite Dharma.

Verse 7

ऋषिव्रती ऋषीकश्च तथा द्वादशवार्षिकः / ब्रह्मदेयानुसंतानो गर्भशुद्धः सहस्रदः

One who keeps the ṛṣi-vrata, follows the seer’s discipline (ṛṣīka), and undertakes the twelve-year observance; who preserves an unbroken succession of Brahma-deya gifts, whose lineage is purified from the womb—such a one gains the merit of a thousandfold giver.

Verse 8

चान्द्रायणव्रतचरः सत्यवादी पुराणवित् / गुरुदेवाग्निपूजासु प्रसक्तो ज्ञानतत्परः

He observes the Cāndrāyaṇa vow, speaks truth, and is learned in the Purāṇas; devoted to worship of guru, deity, and sacred fire, he remains intent upon spiritual knowledge.

Verse 9

विमुक्तः सर्वतो धीरो ब्रह्मभूतो द्विजोत्तमः / महादेवार्चनरतो वैष्णवः पङ्क्तिपावनः

Fully liberated, steadfast in every circumstance, and established in Brahman—such a foremost among the twice-born is devoted to the worship of Mahādeva; and he is also a true Vaiṣṇava, who purifies the entire dining line (pankti) by his very presence.

Verse 10

अहिंसानिरतो नित्यमप्रतिग्रहणस्तथा / सत्रिणो दाननिरता विज्ञेयाः पङ्क्तिपावनाः

Those ever devoted to ahiṃsā, who accept no gifts for personal gain, who uphold satra—sacrificial charities—and who stand firm in giving, are known as “purifiers of the dining line” (paṅkti-pāvana).

Verse 11

युवानः श्रोत्रियाः स्वस्था महायज्ञपरायणाः / सावित्रीजापनिरता ब्राह्मणाः पङ्क्तिपावनाः

Young brāhmaṇas—śrotriyas learned in the Veda—healthy and self-possessed, devoted to the great sacrifices, and ever engaged in the japa of the Sāvitrī (Gāyatrī), are the purifiers of the sacred dining row (paṅkti-pāvana).

Verse 12

कुलीनाः श्रुतवन्तश्च शीलवन्तस्तपस्विनः / अग्निचित्स्नातका विप्रा विज्ञेयाः पङ्क्तिपावनाः

Brāhmaṇas of good lineage, learned in śruti, endowed with noble conduct and devoted to tapas—especially those who have performed Agnicayana and those who have completed the Snātaka vow—are to be known as “purifiers of the dining line” (paṅkti-pāvana).

Verse 13

मातापित्रोर्हिते युक्तः प्रातः स्नायी तथा द्विजः / अध्यात्मविन्मुनिर्दान्तो विज्ञेयः पङ्क्तिपावनः

That twice-born who is devoted to the welfare of mother and father, who bathes at dawn, who knows the inner Self, who is muni-like and self-restrained—he is to be known as a “purifier of the dining line” (paṅkti-pāvana).

Verse 14

ज्ञाननिष्ठो महायोगी वेदान्तार्थविचिन्तकः / श्रद्धालुः श्राद्धनिरतो ब्राह्मणः पङ्क्तिपावनः

A brāhmaṇa steadfast in liberating knowledge, a great yogin who contemplates the meaning of Vedānta; full of faith (śraddhā) and devoted to the ancestral śrāddha rites—he purifies the entire dining line (paṅkti-pāvana).

Verse 15

वेदविद्यारतः स्नातो ब्रह्मचर्यपरः सदा / अथर्वणो मुमुक्षुश्च ब्राह्मणः पङ्क्तिपावनः

A brāhmaṇa devoted to Vedic learning—purified by the post-student bath, ever steadfast in brahmacarya, grounded in the Atharvan tradition, and yearning for mokṣa—purifies the whole dining-row (paṅkti) by his very presence.

Verse 16

असमानप्रवरको ह्यसगोत्रस्तथैव च / असंबन्धी च विज्ञेयो ब्राह्मणः पङ्क्तिपावनः

A brāhmaṇa is to be known as a purifier of the dining line (paṅkti-pāvana) when he is of a different pravara, not of the same gotra, and not related by kinship to the others.

Verse 17

भोजयेद् योगिनं पूर्वं तत्त्वज्ञानरतं यतिम् / अलाभे नैष्ठिकं दान्तमुपकुर्वाणकं तथा

First one should feed a yogin—an ascetic (yati) devoted to the knowledge of truth (tattva). If such a one is not available, then one should feed a steadfast (naiṣṭhika), self-controlled renunciant, and likewise one engaged in helpful service.

Verse 18

तदलाभे गृहस्थं तु मुमुक्षुं सङ्गवर्जितम् / सर्वालाभे साधकं वा गृहस्थमपि भोजयेत्

If such a recipient is not available, one should feed a householder (gṛhastha) who seeks mokṣa and is free from worldly attachment. If even that cannot be obtained, then, when ideal recipients are wholly unavailable, one may feed even a householder who is a sādhaka, a spiritual practitioner.

Verse 19

प्रकृतेर्गुणतत्त्वज्ञो यस्याश्नाति यतिर्हविः / फलं वेदविदां तस्य सहस्रादतिरिच्यते

The reward gained by those who merely know the Veda is surpassed a thousandfold by the merit of that person whose sacrificial offering (havis) is partaken of by an ascetic (yati) who knows the reality of Prakṛti and its guṇas.

Verse 20

तस्माद् यत्नेन योगीन्द्रमीश्वरज्ञानतत्परम् / भोजयेद् हव्यकव्येषु अलाभादितरान् द्विजान्

Therefore, with careful effort, at rites of havya and kavya—offerings to the gods and to the ancestors—one should feed the foremost of yogins, devoted to the knowledge of the Lord (Īśvara). Only when such a one is not obtainable should other twice-born brāhmaṇas be fed.

Verse 21

एष वै प्रथमः कल्पः प्रिदाने हव्यकव्ययोः / अनुकल्पस्त्वयं ज्ञेयः सदा सद्भिरनुष्ठितः

This indeed is the foremost prescribed procedure for the proper offering of havya and kavya—oblations to the gods and to the ancestors. This too should be understood as an authorized subsidiary procedure (anukalpa), ever practiced by the virtuous.

Verse 22

मातामहं मातुलं च स्वस्त्रीयं श्वशुरं गुरुम् / दौहित्रं विट्पतिं बन्धुमृत्विग्याज्यौ च भोजयेत्

In the śrāddha observance, one should offer a meal to the maternal grandfather, the maternal uncle, one’s sister’s son, the father-in-law, one’s teacher (guru), the daughter’s son, the headman of the community, a kinsman, and also the officiating priest (ṛtvij) and the one for whom the rite is performed (yājya).

Verse 23

न श्राद्धे भोजयेन्मित्रं धनैः कार्यो ऽस्य संग्रहः / पैशाची दक्षिणा सा हि नैवामुत्र फलप्रदा

At a Śrāddha one should not feed a friend, nor should one try to “secure” him with money as a bribe or inducement. Such a gratuity is called paiśācī—demonic in nature—and it yields no fruit in the hereafter.

Verse 24

काम श्राद्धे ऽर्चयेन्मित्रं नाभिरूपमपि त्वरिम् / द्विषता हि हविर्भुक्तं भवति प्रेत्य निष्फलम्

In a Śrāddha, one should not, out of personal desire, honor as the recipient even a friend—nor even one who is handsome and eager. For when the oblation (havis) is eaten by one who bears hatred, it becomes fruitless after death.

Verse 25

ब्राह्मणो ह्यनधीयानस्तृणाग्निरिव शाम्यति / तस्मै हव्यं न दातव्यं न हि भस्मनि हूयते

A brahmin who does not pursue sacred study dies down like a grass-fire. Therefore, one should not offer sacrificial oblations to him—for offerings are not poured into ashes.

Verse 26

यथेरिणे बीजमुप्त्वा न वप्ता लभते फलम् / तथानृचे हविर्दत्त्वा न दाता लभते फलम्

Just as a sower obtains no fruit by casting seed on barren ground, so a giver obtains no merit by offering oblations to one ignorant of the Vedas.

Verse 27

यावतो ग्रसते पिण्डान् हव्यकव्येष्वमन्त्रवित् / तावतो ग्रसते प्रेत्य दीप्तान् स्थूलांस्त्वयोगुडान्

As many balls of food as an ignorant person eats from offerings to gods and ancestors, so many burning iron balls must he swallow after death.

Verse 28

अपि विद्याकुलैर्युक्ता हीनवृत्ता नराधमाः / यत्रैते भुञ्जते हव्यं तद् भवेदासुर द्विजाः

Even if learned, those of base conduct become 'asuric' twice-born. Where such people eat offerings, that rite is regarded as demonic.

Verse 29

यस्य वेदश्च वेदी च विच्छिद्येते त्रिपूरुषम् / स वै दुर्ब्राह्मणो नार्हः श्राद्धादिषु कदाचन

He whose Vedic learning and lineage are cut off for three generations is a 'bad Brahmin'; he is never fit for ancestral rites.

Verse 30

शूद्रप्रेष्यो भृतो राज्ञो वृषलो ग्रामयाजकः / बधबन्धोपजीवी च षडेते ब्रह्मबन्धवः

One who serves at the bidding of a Śūdra, one maintained as a paid hireling of the king, a degraded man, a village-priest who performs rites for the populace for livelihood, and one who lives by slaughter or by imprisoning and binding—these six are called “brahma-bandhus”, Brahmins in name only.

Verse 31

दत्तानुयोगान् वृत्यर्थं पतितान् मनुरब्रवीत् / वेदविक्रायिणो ह्येते श्राद्धादिषु विगर्हिताः

Manu declared that those who, for the sake of livelihood, accept paid commissions to perform rites are “fallen”; for they are sellers of the Veda, and thus are censured in śrāddha and related ceremonies.

Verse 32

श्रुतिविक्रयिणो ये तु परपूर्वासमुद्भवाः / असमानान् याजयन्ति पतितास्ते प्रकीर्तिताः

But those who trade in the Veda—who arise from a lineage outside the proper ancestral order, and who officiate sacrifices for those not their equals—are declared to be fallen.

Verse 33

असंस्कृताध्यापका ये भृत्या वाध्यापयन्ति ये / अधीयते तथा वेदान् पतितास्ते प्रकीर्तिताः

Those who teach the Veda without proper consecration and discipline, and those who make servants or hired dependents teach it as well—such people, and those who study the Vedas in that improper manner, are declared to be fallen (patita).

Verse 34

वृद्धश्रावकनिर्ग्रन्थाः पञ्चरात्रविदो जनाः / कापालिकाः पाशुपताः पाषण्डा ये च तद्विधाः

Elder Śrāvakas and Nirgranthas, people learned in the Pañcarātra, the Kāpālikas, the Pāśupatas, and those called pāṣaṇḍas—along with others of similar type—(are spoken of here).

Verse 35

यस्याश्नन्ति हवींष्येते दुरात्मानस्तु तामसाः / न तस्य तद् भवेच्छ्राद्धं प्रेत्य चेह फलप्रदम्

If the oblation-food (havīs) is eaten by wicked-minded persons of tamasic nature, then that rite is not a true Śrāddha for the one on whose behalf it is offered, nor does it yield any fruit—either after death or here in this world.

Verse 36

अनाश्रमो यो द्विजः स्यादाश्रमी वा निरर्थकः / मिथ्याश्रमी च ते विप्रा विज्ञेयाः पङ्क्तिदूषकाः

O vipras, a twice-born man who lives without any āśrama, or one called an āśramī yet purposeless because he does not keep its discipline, and one who falsely poses as an āśramī—such brahmins are to be known as defilers of the dining row (pañkti), unfit for sacred feeding rites.

Verse 37

दुश्चर्मा कुनखी कुष्ठी श्वित्री च श्यावदन्तकः / विद्धप्रजननश्चैव स्तेनः क्लीबो ऽथ नास्तिकः

Such a person is afflicted with diseased skin, deformed nails, leprosy, vitiligo, and darkened teeth; one’s generative power is impaired; and one becomes a thief, an impotent man, and finally a denier of the sacred (nāstika).

Verse 38

मद्यपो वृषलीसक्तो वीरहा दिधिषूपतिः / आगारदाही कुण्डाशी सोमविक्रयिणो द्विजाः

A twice-born who drinks intoxicants, who is attached to a śūdra-woman, who slays a hero, who takes a woman with a living husband as his wife, who burns houses, who eats from a pot improperly offered to the sacred fire, and who sells Soma—such are the fallen among the twice-born.

Verse 39

परिवेत्ता तथा हिंस्त्रः परिवित्तिर्निराकृतिः / पौनर्भवः कुसीदी च तथा नक्षत्रदर्शकः

So too, the man who marries before his elder brother, the violent person, the elder brother left unmarried because the younger married first, the outcaste, one who remarries, the usurer, and likewise the astrologer who earns his living by star-divination—these are counted among the blameworthy.

Verse 40

गीतवादित्रनिरतो व्याधितः काण एव च / हीनाङ्गश्चातिरिक्ताङ्गो ह्यवकीर्णिस्तथैव च

One addicted to singing and instrumental music; one who is diseased; one who is one‑eyed; one who is missing a limb; one who has an extra limb; and likewise one who is an avakīrṇin (ritually fallen/impure) — such persons are regarded as unfit for the intended sacred observance.

Verse 41

कन्यादूषी कुण्डगोलौ अभिशस्तो ऽथ देवलः / मित्रध्रुक् पिशुनश्चैव नित्यं भार्यानुवर्तकः

One who violates a maiden; one born of illicit unions (kuṇḍa and gola); one under public censure; a priest who lives by serving idols for hire; a betrayer of friends; a slanderer; and one ever ruled by his wife—these are counted among the fallen and blameworthy.

Verse 42

मातापित्रोर्गुरोस्त्यागी दारत्यागी तथैव च / गोत्रभिद् भ्रष्टशौचश्च काण्डस्पृष्टस्तथैव च

One who abandons his mother, father, or teacher; one who abandons his wife; one who violates the boundaries of lineage by illicit unions; one who has fallen from purity of conduct and ritual cleanliness; and one tainted by forbidden acts—such persons are declared defiled in matters of dharma.

Verse 43

अनपत्यः कूटसाक्षी याचको रङ्गजीवकः / समुद्रयायी कृतहा तथा समयभेदकः

One who remains without offspring; one who gives false testimony; a beggar-by-profession; one who lives by acting on the stage; a seafarer; a contract-slayer (killer for hire); and one who breaks agreed conventions or compacts—these are counted among blameworthy ways of life.

Verse 44

देवनिन्दापरश्चैव वेदनिन्दारतस्तथा / द्विजनिन्दारतश्चैते वर्ज्याः श्राद्धादिकर्मसु

Likewise, one intent on reviling the gods, one who delights in reviling the Vedas, and one who delights in reviling the twice-born (dvija)—such persons are to be excluded from śrāddha and other rites of that kind.

Verse 45

कृतघ्नः पिशुनः क्रूरो नास्तिको वेदनिन्दकः / मित्रध्रुक् कुहकश्चैव विशेषात् पङ्क्तिदूषकाः

The ungrateful, the slanderer, the cruel, the unbeliever, the reviler of the Veda, the betrayer of friends, and the deceitful—these, above all, defile the communal dining line (pāṅkti) and corrupt dharmic fellowship.

Verse 46

सर्वे पुनरभोज्यान्नास्त्वदानार्हाश्च कर्मसु / ब्रह्मभावनिरस्ताश्च वर्जनीयाः प्रयत्नतः

All such persons are to be regarded as unfit to partake again of sacred food; in ritual acts they are not worthy recipients of your gifts. Those who have cast aside contemplation of Brahman are to be carefully avoided with diligence.

Verse 47

शूद्रान्नरसपुष्टाङ्गः संध्योपासनवर्जितः / महायज्ञविहीनश्च ब्राह्मणः पङ्क्तिदूषकः

A Brāhmaṇa whose body is sustained by food received from a Śūdra, who neglects the daily worship at the sandhyā-junctures, and who is devoid of the great sacrifices (mahāyajñas)—such a Brāhmaṇa becomes a polluter of the dining/ritual line (paṅkti).

Verse 48

अधीतनाशनश्चैव स्नानहोमविवर्जितः / तामसो राजसश्चैव ब्राह्मणः पङ्क्तिदूषकः

A Brāhmaṇa who ruins (by neglect or violation) his sacred study, who is without bathing and the fire-offering (homa), and who is ruled by tamas and rajas—such a one contaminates the dining row (paṅkti).

Verse 49

बहुनात्र किमुक्तेन विहितान् ये न कुर्वते / निन्दितानाचरन्त्येते वर्जनीयाः प्रयत्नतः

What is the use of saying much here? Those who do not perform the duties that are enjoined, and who instead practice what is condemned—such people should be carefully avoided.