Shloka 13

Nāndīmukha-śrāddha (Prosperity Rites), Preta-kriyā, Aśauca, Ekoddiṣṭa, and Sapiṇḍīkaraṇa Framework

Devanagari script

प्रथमे ऽह्नि तृतीये च सप्तमे नवमे तथा वस्त्रत्यागं बहिःस्नानं कृत्वा दद्यात् तिलोदकम्

Transliteration

prathame 'hni tṛtīye ca saptame navame tathā vastratyāgaṃ bahiḥsnānaṃ kṛtvā dadyāt tilodakam

Translation

On the first day, and likewise on the third, the seventh, and the ninth, having set aside one’s garments and bathed outside, one should offer water mixed with sesame (tilodaka).

Word by Word

• प्रथमे: on the first
• प्रथमे: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण) with अह्नि
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्रथम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन; क्रमवाचक-विशेषण (ordinal)

• अह्नि: day
• अह्नि: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अहन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन

• तृतीये: on the third
• तृतीये: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण) with अह्नि (understood)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तृतीय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम्; समुच्चय-बोधक (conjunction)

• सप्तमे: on the seventh
• सप्तमे: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सप्तम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन

• नवमे: on the ninth
• नवमे: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: नवम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th), एकवचन

• तथा: likewise
• तथा: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्ययम्; समुच्चय/प्रकार-बोधक (adverb: “likewise/also”)

• वस्त्रत्यागम्: discarding of clothes
• वस्त्रत्यागम्: Karma (Object/कर्म) of कृत्वा
• Type: Noun
• Root: वस्त्र + त्याग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (“of clothes” + “discarding”)

• बहिःस्नानम्: bathing outside
• बहिःस्नानम्: Karma (Object/कर्म) of कृत्वा
• Type: Noun
• Root: बहिः (अव्यय) + स्नान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; अव्ययीभाव-समासः (“outside” + “bath”)

• कृत्वा: having done
• कृत्वा: Purvakala-kriya (Prior action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु) → कृत्वा (क्त्वा-प्रत्यय)
• Form: अव्यय-कृदन्तः (क्त्वा/gerund), पूर्वकालिक-क्रिया (having done)

• दद्यात्: should give
• दद्यात्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दा (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• तिलोदकम्: sesame-water offering
• तिलोदकम्: Karma (Object/कर्म) of दद्यात्
• Type: Noun
• Root: तिल + उदक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (“of sesame” + “water”)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (in instruction to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Specific śrāddha-day observances: bathing, garment protocol, and tilodaka offerings on set days

Teaching: Ethical

Quality: authoritative

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: On specified days, ritual purity is heightened through bathing and offering sesame-mixed water (tilodaka), sustaining the śrāddha link to the departed in accordance with dharma.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Keep periodic remembrance practices structured—set days for prayer/charity, cultivate cleanliness and simplicity to steady the mind in loss.

Vishishtadvaita: Ritual acts are meaningful as ordained modes of offering within the Lord’s governance, integrating bodily discipline with sacred intention.

FAQs

What is the significance of tilodaka (sesame-water) in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse presents tilodaka as a prescribed offering on specific days, functioning as a dharmic oblation used in rites for the departed, combining purification and ritual continuity.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the discipline of ritual purity here?

Parāśara emphasizes bodily and procedural purity—setting aside garments and performing an external bath—before making the offering, showing that intention and cleanliness together uphold the rite.

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

Though Vishnu is not named in the verse, the Vishnu Purana frames such dharmic observances as participation in cosmic order ultimately grounded in the Supreme Lord’s sovereignty, where right action sustains harmony in the world.