Shloka 7

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

Devanagari script

अकृताग्रयणं यच् च धान्यजातं नरेश्वर राजमाषान् अणूंश् चैव मसूरांश् च विवर्जयेत्

Transliteration

akṛtāgrayaṇaṃ yac ca dhānyajātaṃ nareśvara rājamāṣān aṇūṃś caiva masūrāṃś ca vivarjayet

Translation

O lord of men, one should not partake of any grain that has not been sanctified by the first-fruits rite (Agra-yāṇa); likewise, one should avoid rājāmāṣa beans, aṇu pulses, and masūra (lentils).

Word by Word

• अकृताग्रयणम्: (grain) for which the agrayaṇa has not been done
• अकृताग्रयणम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अ-कृत-अग्रयण (प्रातिपदिक; अ + कृत + अग्रयण)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; नञ्-तत्पुरुष ('not having had agrayaṇa/first-fruits rite performed')

• यत्: which
• यत्: Sambandha (Relative/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; सम्बन्धसूचक (relative pronoun)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Linker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयबोधक (conjunction)

• धान्यजातम्: grain produce (any grain kind)
• धान्यजातम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धान्य-जात (प्रातिपदिक; धान्य + जात)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष ('kind/collection of grain')

• नरेश्वर: O king
• नरेश्वर: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नर-ईश्वर (प्रातिपदिक; नर + ईश्वर)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8), एकवचन

• राजमाषान्: rājamāṣa beans
• राजमाषान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: राज-माष (प्रातिपदिक; राज + माष)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), बहुवचन; तत्पुरुष ('royal beans' = a kind of pulse)

• अणून्: aṇu beans (a kind of pulse)
• अणून्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अणु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), बहुवचन

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Linker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयबोधक (conjunction)

• एव: indeed, just
• एव: Sambandha (Emphasis/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधारण (particle of emphasis)

• मसूरान्: lentils
• मसूरान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मसूर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2), बहुवचन

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Linker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयबोधक (conjunction)

• विवर्जयेत्: should avoid, should exclude
• विवर्जयेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वि-√वृज् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (in instruction to Maitreya, framed as guidance for righteous kings/householders)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Dietary/ritual restraints: avoiding unsanctified first-fruits grain and certain pulses to preserve purity and śrāddha efficacy

Teaching: Ethical

Quality: authoritative

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Food and grain become fit for consumption and offering only after sanctification (agra-yāṇa/first-fruits), and certain items are to be avoided—discipline safeguards ritual purity and dharmic order.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Adopt a ‘first offering’ principle (gratitude, prayer, sharing) before consumption, and maintain consistent dietary/ethical restraints that support spiritual practice.

Vishishtadvaita: Sanctification links material life to the Lord’s order: the world is not rejected but consecrated, aligning embodied action with divine governance (qualified non-dual engagement with matter).

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman

Bhakti Type: Dasya

Characters & Entities

• Vishnu
• King (nareśvara)
• Agra-yāṇa rite

FAQs

What is the significance of the Agra-yāṇa (first-fruits) rite in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse treats Agra-yāṇa as a sanctifying threshold: grain should not be eaten until it is ritually acknowledged and offered, aligning daily sustenance with dharma and sacred order.

How does Sage Parāśara explain dietary restraint in the dharma sections of the Vishnu Purana?

Parāśara presents diet as part of ritual purity: what is eaten affects the fitness for sacrifice, vows, and household rites, so certain grains/pulses and unconsecrated produce are to be avoided.

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

Even practical rules of food are framed within cosmic sovereignty: living by consecration and restraint sustains dharma, which in Vaishnava theology is ultimately upheld by Vishnu as the Supreme ground of order.