Shloka 43

Saṅkara-jāti-nirṇaya and Gṛhastha-ācāra: Daily Rites, Purity, Anadhyāya, and Food Discipline

Devanagari script

विरुद्धं वर्जयेत्कम प्रेतधूमं नदीतरम् / केशभस्मतुषाङ्गारकपालेषु च संस्थितिम्

Transliteration

viruddhaṃ varjayetkama pretadhūmaṃ nadītaram / keśabhasmatuṣāṅgārakapāleṣu ca saṃsthitim

Translation

Qu’on évite les conduites incompatibles, contraires au dharma; qu’on se détourne aussi de la fumée du bûcher funéraire et de la traversée du fleuve aux moments impropres. Qu’on évite encore de demeurer parmi cheveux, cendres, balles, braises et crânes.

Word by Word

• viruddham: incompatible (things)
• viruddham: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viruddha (कृदन्त; वि+रुध् धातु)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; ‘विरुद्ध’ (incompatible/forbidden)

• varjayet: should avoid
• varjayet: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vṛj/varj (वर्ज् धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ्, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• kāmam: indeed/at all costs
• kāmam: Sambandha (Adverbial/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kāma (काम प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययीभाव-प्रयोगे अव्ययवत्; ‘कामम्’ (optionally/at will; here: ‘certainly/indeed’)

• preta-dhūmam: smoke from a corpse/funeral smoke
• preta-dhūmam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: preta (प्रेत प्रातिपदिक) + dhūma (धूम प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (determinative)

• nadī-taram: crossing a river
• nadī-taram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nadī (नदी प्रातिपदिक) + tara (तर प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष ‘नदी-तरम्’ (crossing a river/river-crossing)

• keśa-bhasma-tuṣa-aṅgāra-kapāleṣu: in hair, ash, husk, charcoal, and skulls/potsherds
• keśa-bhasma-tuṣa-aṅgāra-kapāleṣu: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: keśa (प्रातिपदिक) + bhasma (प्रातिपदिक) + tuṣa (प्रातिपदिक) + aṅgāra (प्रातिपदिक) + kapāla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (locative), बहुवचन; समासः—द्वन्द्व (copulative)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Conjunction/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक-अव्यय

• saṃsthitim: standing/remaining (in contact)
• saṃsthitim: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: saṃsthiti (संस्थिति प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

Speaker

Lord Viṣṇu (in instruction to Garuḍa, Vinatā-putra)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Avoid viruddha-ācāra (incompatible/contradictory conduct) and aśauca-laden environments that disturb purity and mental steadiness.

Vedantic Theme: Managing tamas-inducing influences; maintaining sattva through place, time, and association.

Application: Observe boundaries around funerary spaces unless duty requires; avoid lingering in unclean/unsafe areas; follow local dharmic and practical norms for travel and river crossings.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: bibhatsa

Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka

Geographic Context

Type: śmaśāna (cremation ground); river ford/ghāṭa

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana 1.96 (aśauca/śmaśāna-adjacent cautions)

Characters & Entities

• Preta

FAQs

What is the importance of avoiding 'preta-dhūma' in the Garuda Purana?

This verse treats funeral-pyre smoke as a strong marker of death-associated impurity and advises avoidance to preserve ritual and psychological auspiciousness.

How does this verse relate to the soul’s journey and after-death themes?

By warning against death-associated environments (preta-related signs), it reinforces the Garuda Purana’s broader concern with maintaining dharmic purity around death and post-death transitions.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Keep clear boundaries around cremation/impurity contexts when observing vows, pūjā, or sādhana; favor cleanliness and avoid lingering in unhygienic or inauspicious surroundings.