Shloka 6

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

Devanagari script

सीमन्तोन्नयने चैव पुत्रादिमुखदर्शने नान्दीमुखं पितृगणं पूजयेत् प्रयतो गृही

Transliteration

sīmantonnayane caiva putrādimukhadarśane nāndīmukhaṃ pitṛgaṇaṃ pūjayet prayato gṛhī

Translation

At the rite of parting the hair and at the first auspicious sight of a son and such family milestones, the disciplined householder should reverently worship the ancestral hosts known as the Nāndīmukha Pitṛs.

Word by Word

• सीमन्तोन्नयने: at the rite of parting the hair (sīmantonnayana)
• सीमन्तोन्नयने: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सीमन्त-उन्नयन (प्रातिपदिक; सीमन्त + उन्नयन)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन; विषय-अधिकरणे (locative of occasion)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-निपात (conjunction)

• एव: indeed/just
• एव: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारणार्थक-निपात (emphatic particle)

• पुत्रादिमुखदर्शने: at the seeing of the child’s face etc. (first sight)
• पुत्रादिमुखदर्शने: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुत्र-आदि-मुख-दर्शन (प्रातिपदिक; पुत्र + आदि + मुख + दर्शन)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन; विषय-अधिकरणे (locative of occasion)

• नान्दीमुखम्: the Nāndīmukha (rite/oblation)
• नान्दीमुखम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नान्दीमुख (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; कर्म (object)

• पितृगणम्: the group of Pitṛs (ancestors)
• पितृगणम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ-गण (प्रातिपदिक; पितृ + गण)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; कर्म (object)

• पूजयेत्: should worship
• पूजयेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: पूज् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन

• प्रयतः: restrained, purified
• प्रयतः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्रयत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifying the subject)

• गृही: the householder
• गृही: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गृहिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; कर्ता

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (in instruction to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Śrāddha and pitṛ-tarpaṇa duties for householders, especially Nāndīmukha rites at saṃskāras

Teaching: Ethical

Quality: authoritative

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Gṛhastha-dharma includes honoring Nāndīmukha Pitṛs at auspicious family saṃskāras to sustain lineage and order.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Mark family milestones with gratitude and remembrance of ancestors through prayer, charity, and disciplined conduct rather than mere social celebration.

Vishishtadvaita: Dharma as Bhagavad-ārādhana: social duties (pitṛ-yajña) are integrated into a Vishnu-centered order where the household supports the cosmic and moral harmony.

Characters & Entities

• Pitrs (ancestors)
• Nāndīmukha Pitṛs
• Putra (son)

FAQs

What is the significance of Nāndīmukha Pitṛ worship in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse frames Nāndīmukha Pitṛ worship as an auspicious, lineage-protecting observance tied to joyful samskāras, ensuring continuity of family dharma and prosperity through reverent remembrance of ancestors.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the householder’s role in sustaining dharma here?

Parāśara presents the gṛhastha as the ritual pivot of society: by performing samskāras with purity and honoring the Pitṛs at key milestones, the householder upholds inherited obligations that stabilize social and cosmic order.

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

Even when Vishnu is not named, the Purana’s dharma-ritual framework assumes that orderly rites and rightful conduct participate in Vishnu’s sustaining power (sthiti), aligning family life with the Supreme preserver of universal order.