Shloka 33
Pātra-Nirṇaya and Ritual Procedure: Who to Feed, Who to Avoid, and Step-by-Step Śrāddha Performance
पिता पितामहश् चैव तथैव प्रपितामहः मम तृप्तिं प्रयान्त्व् अग्निहोमाप्यायितमूर्तयः
pitā pitāmahaś caiva tathaiva prapitāmahaḥ mama tṛptiṃ prayāntv agnihomāpyāyitamūrtayaḥ
May my father, my grandfather, and my great-grandfather—whose forms are nourished and strengthened by the sacred fire-offering—attain satisfaction through me, and be fully appeased.
Sage Parāśara (instructing Maitreya while describing Śrāddha/tarpaṇa formulas)
Speaker: Parasara
Topic: Śrāddha efficacy linked to agnihoma and pitṛ-satisfaction across three generations
Teaching: Devotional
Quality: authoritative
Concept: Offerings empowered by agnihoma nourish the Pitṛs’ subtle forms, and the performer prays for their satisfaction through his act.
Vedantic Theme: Dharma
Application: Let duties be done as consecrated action—linking family remembrance with disciplined ritual/ethical practice rather than mere sentiment.
Vishishtadvaita: Consecrated karma (yajña) functions as service within the Lord’s cosmic order, where fire (Agni) mediates offerings without denying personal distinctness of recipients.
Bhakti Type: Shanta
FAQs
This verse reflects the standard three-generation lineage focus of Śrāddha: offerings are directed to the immediate ancestral line so they attain tṛpti (satisfaction) and the family’s dharmic continuity is upheld.
He presents the Pitṛs as having forms that are ‘nourished’ (āpyāyita) by the fire-offering, indicating that ritual oblations, properly offered, sustain and benefit ancestors in their subtle state.
Even when Vishnu is not named in the line, the Vishnu Purana frames dharmic rites as part of the divinely ordered cosmos upheld by the Supreme Reality; ancestor offerings become a means of participating in that sustaining order.