Shloka 20

गृहस्थस्य सदाचारः: शौच, तर্পण, वैश्वदेव, अतिथिधर्म, भोजन-विधि, संध्योपासन, ऋतु-धर्मः

Devanagari script

निष्पादिताङ्घ्रिशौचस् तु पादाव् अभ्युक्ष्य वै पुनः त्रिः पिबेत् सलिलं तेन तथा द्विः परिमार्जयेत्

Transliteration

niṣpāditāṅghriśaucas tu pādāv abhyukṣya vai punaḥ triḥ pibet salilaṃ tena tathā dviḥ parimārjayet

Translation

Having completed the cleansing of the feet, one should again sprinkle water upon the feet; with that very water one should sip it thrice in ācamana, and thereafter wipe (mouth and hands) twice.

Word by Word

• निष्पादित-अङ्घ्रि-शौचः: one who has completed cleansing of the feet
• निष्पादित-अङ्घ्रि-शौचः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: निष्पादित (कृदन्त; √पद्/√पाद् caus. √पद्, निष्-उपसर्ग) + अङ्घ्रि (प्रातिपदिक) + शौच (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; बहुपद-तत्पुरुष; विशेषण — “whose foot-cleansing has been completed”

• तु: then/indeed
• तु: Discourse (निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; विरोध/विशेषार्थ (particle: but/indeed)

• पादौ: the two feet
• पादौ: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पाद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, द्विवचन

• अभ्युक्ष्य: having sprinkled
• अभ्युक्ष्य: Purvakala (पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: √उक्ष् (धातु) [अभि-उपसर्ग]
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (gerund/absolutive) — having sprinkled

• वै: indeed
• वै: Discourse (निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वै (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (emphatic particle)

• पुनः: again
• पुनः: Modifier (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पुनः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; पुनरर्थक (adverb: again)

• त्रिः: three times
• त्रिः: Modifier (परिमाण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: त्रिः (अव्यय)
• Form: संख्याव्यय (numeral adverb: thrice)

• पिबेत्: should drink
• पिबेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √पा (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• सलिलम्: water
• सलिलम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सलिल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• तेन: with that (water)
• तेन: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• तथा: likewise
• तथा: Modifier (समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; प्रकार/समुच्चयार्थ

• द्विः: two times
• द्विः: Modifier (परिमाण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: द्विः (अव्यय)
• Form: संख्याव्यय (numeral adverb: twice)

• परिमार्जयेत्: should wipe/clean thoroughly
• परिमार्जयेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √मृज् (धातु) [परि-उपसर्ग]
• Form: विधिलिङ् (optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (in instruction to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Step-by-step procedure of śauca: foot-cleansing, sprinkling, sipping thrice, wiping twice

Teaching: Ethical

Quality: authoritative

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Dharma is upheld through precise observance of purificatory steps, where repetition and measure train steadiness and reverence.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Adopt consistent, measured routines before prayer/meditation; let bodily discipline support mental steadiness.

Vishishtadvaita: Ordered practice (niyama) prepares the embodied self for God-centered acts; bodily discipline is integrated into spiritual life rather than rejected.

Vaishnava Theology

Bhakti Type: Shanta

FAQs

What is the significance of ritual purity (śauca) in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse presents śauca as a disciplined, repeatable practice—sprinkling, sipping (ācamana), and wiping—by which one aligns daily life with dharma and readiness for sacred acts.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the practice of ācamana here?

He specifies a sequence: after cleansing and sprinkling the feet, one sips water three times and then wipes twice, indicating a codified method of purification within the broader dharma-teaching to Maitreya.

What is the theological importance of Lord Vishnu in this context?

Though Vishnu is not named in the verse, the Purana frames dharma and purity as supports for devotion and worship—practices ultimately oriented toward the Supreme Lord as the sustaining reality of cosmic and moral order.