Shloka 13

श्राद्ध-योग्य द्रव्य, निषेध, तथा गयाश्राद्ध-माहात्म्य (Śrāddha Materials, Prohibitions, and the Glory of Gayā)

Devanagari script

उदक्यासूतिकाशौचिमृतहारैश् च वीक्षिते श्राद्धे सुरा न पितरो भुञ्जते पुरुषर्षभ

Transliteration

udakyāsūtikāśaucimṛtahāraiś ca vīkṣite śrāddhe surā na pitaro bhuñjate puruṣarṣabha

Translation

O best of men, when a Śrāddha is performed under the stain of impurity—during menses, after childbirth, in ritual defilement, or in the presence of those who live by impure means—the Pitṛs do not partake of the offering; the deities of surā (intoxicating drink) consume it instead.

Word by Word

• उदक्यासूतिका-शौचि-मृतहारैः: by (things like) menstruation, childbirth-impurity, impurity, and food of the dead
• उदक्यासूतिका-शौचि-मृतहारैः: करण (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: उदक्या (प्रातिपदिक) + सूतिका (प्रातिपदिक) + शौचि (प्रातिपदिक) + मृतहार (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), बहुवचन; समाहार-द्वन्द्वः (collective copulative)

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

• वीक्षिते: when (it is) observed/seen
• वीक्षिते: अधिकरण (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वि√ईक्ष् (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन; ‘वीक्षित’ = observed/seen

• श्राद्धे: in the śrāddha rite
• श्राद्धे: अधिकरण (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: श्राद्ध (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन

• सुरा: liquor
• सुरा: कर्म (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सुरा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन

• न: not
• न: निषेध (Negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्यय (negation particle)

• पितरः: the ancestors (pitṛs)
• पितरः: कर्ता (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचन

• भुञ्जते: eat/partake
• भुञ्जते: क्रिया (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √भुज् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (present), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन

• पुरुषर्षभ: O bull among men
• पुरुषर्षभ: सम्बोधन (Address)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुरुषर्षभ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/सम्बोधन), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (puruṣāṇām ṛṣabhaḥ)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Śrāddha-vidhi: impurities that invalidate offerings and their consequences

Teaching: Ethical

Quality: authoritative

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Śrāddha performed under states of aśauca and in the company of the impure fails to reach the Pitṛs and is diverted to lower-consuming forces.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Maintain clarity of time, place, and personal cleanliness for rites of remembrance; postpone ceremonies during major impurity periods.

Vishishtadvaita: Dharma as a mode of service (kainkarya) that must be offered in a sattvika manner for its intended spiritual reach.

Vaishnava Theology

Bhakti Type: Dasya

Characters & Entities

• Pitrs (ancestors)
• Sura (deities of intoxicants)

FAQs

What is the significance of ritual purity in Śrāddha according to the Vishnu Purana?

This verse states that impurity conditions (menstruation, post-partum state, or other aśauca/impure presence) disrupt the intended ancestral reception, so the Pitṛs do not accept the offering.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the consequence of performing Śrāddha under impurity?

He frames it as a redirection of the rite’s fruit: the offering fails to reach the ancestors and is instead ‘consumed’ by surā, signaling a ritual misfire caused by improper conditions.

The theological importance of Lord Vishnu in this context?

Within the Vishnu Purana’s dharma-teaching mode, correct performance of rites sustains cosmic and social order under Vishnu’s sovereignty; purity safeguards that offerings align with the intended divine-ancestral economy.