Shloka 20

Pātra-Nirṇaya and Ritual Procedure: Who to Feed, Who to Avoid, and Step-by-Step Śrāddha Performance

Devanagari script

यवाम्बुना च देवानां दद्याद् अर्घ्यं विधानतः स्रग्गन्धधूपदीपांश् च दत्त्वा तेभ्यो यथाविधि

Transliteration

yavāmbunā ca devānāṃ dadyād arghyaṃ vidhānataḥ sraggandhadhūpadīpāṃś ca dattvā tebhyo yathāvidhi

Translation

Then, in the prescribed manner, one should offer arghya to the gods with water mixed with barley, and duly present garlands, fragrance, incense, and lamps in their proper order.

Word by Word

• यवाम्बुना: with barley-water
• यवाम्बुना: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यव + अम्बु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (यवयुक्तम् अम्बु)

• च: and
• च: Samuccaya (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• देवानाम्: for/of the gods
• देवानाम्: Sampradana/Sambandha (Recipient/Genitive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• दद्यात्: should offer/give
• दद्यात्: Kriyā (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दा (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन

• अर्घ्यम्: arghya offering
• अर्घ्यम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अर्घ्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• विधानतः: according to rule
• विधानतः: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: विधान (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तसिल्-प्रत्ययान्त अव्यय (ablatival adverb): ‘विधानतः’ = विधानानुसारम्

• स्रक्: garland
• स्रक्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्रज्/स्रक् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन (समासपूर्वपद; ‘स्रग्’ रूपम्)

• गन्ध: fragrance/perfume
• गन्ध: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गन्ध (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन (समासपूर्वपद)

• धूप: incense
• धूप: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धूप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन (समासपूर्वपद)

• दीपान्: lamps
• दीपान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दीप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• च: and
• च: Samuccaya (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• दत्त्वा: having given
• दत्त्वा: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Absolutive/पूर्वक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दा (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (absolutive/gerund)

• तेभ्यः: to them
• तेभ्यः: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• यथाविधि: as prescribed
• यथाविधि: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यथा (अव्यय) + विधि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययीभाव-समासः; अव्यय (adverb): ‘यथाविधि’ = विधिनुसारम्

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (in instruction to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Specific offerings (arghya with yavāmbu; srag-gandha-dhūpa-dīpa) and their ordered presentation to devas

Teaching: Ethical

Quality: precise and procedural

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Material offerings become dhārmic when rendered in right order and intention, aligning the householder with ṛta (sacral order).

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Do daily worship with consistency—simple offerings (light, fragrance, food) made attentively and without haste.

Vishishtadvaita: Pūjā as īśvara-śeṣatva in practice: the self acts as the Lord’s servant, offering the world back to its indwelling master.

Vaishnava Theology

Bhakti Type: Dasya

Characters & Entities

• Devas (the gods)
• Arghya
• Yava (barley)
• Dharma (ritual injunction)

FAQs

What is the significance of offering arghya with barley-water (yavāmbu) in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse frames arghya—here with water mixed with barley—as a rule-governed act of reverence that harmonizes the worshipper with dharma and the ordained cosmic order.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the correct sequence of worship in this context?

Parāśara emphasizes vidhānataḥ and yathāvidhi—worship is not casual but performed in a prescribed order: arghya first, then garlands, fragrance, incense, and lamps as regulated offerings.

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

Even when the verse names offerings to the devas, the Vishnu Purana’s broader frame treats ritual correctness (dharma) as part of the divine order ultimately rooted in Vishnu’s sovereignty, with proper worship reflecting alignment with that supreme reality.