Shloka 16

Viṣṇv-ekapūjya-nirṇaya; Gaṅgā-Viṣṇupadī-māhātmya; Kali-yuga doṣa; Puṣkara-dharma of Viṣṇu-smaraṇa

Devanagari script

शश्वत्केशा यस्य गात्रे खगेन्द्र प्रभास्यन्ते शरभाख्यो पयोतः / यमस्य भार्या श्यामला या खगेन्द्र यस्मात्सदा कलिभार्यापिया च

Transliteration

śaśvatkeśā yasya gātre khagendra prabhāsyante śarabhākhyo payotaḥ / yamasya bhāryā śyāmalā yā khagendra yasmātsadā kalibhāryāpiyā ca

Translation

Ô Garuḍa, roi des oiseaux : celui dont le corps a les poils toujours hérissés et resplendissants est connu sous le nom de Śarabha. Et l’épouse de Yama est Śyāmalā, ô souverain des oiseaux, dont on dit aussi qu’elle est la femme de Kali.

Word by Word

• śaśvat-keśā: having perpetual hair
• śaśvat-keśā: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śaśvat (अव्यय) + keśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Prathamā (1st/प्रथमा), Ekavacana (एकवचन); कर्मधारय-समासः (adjectival compound)

• yasya: whose
• yasya: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Genitive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga (पुंलिङ्ग), Ṣaṣṭhī (6th/षष्ठी), Ekavacana; relative pronoun “whose”

• gātre: in the body/limb
• gātre: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gātra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napुंसकलिङ्ग (नपुंसक), Saptamī (7th/सप्तमी), Ekavacana; locative “in/on the body”

• khagendra: O lord of birds (Garuda)
• khagendra: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: khaga (प्रातिपदिक) + indra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Sambodhana (vocative/सम्बोधन), Ekavacana; तत्पुरुष (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष) “lord of birds”

• prabhāsyante: shine forth
• prabhāsyante: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pra√bhās (धातु)
• Form: Laṭ (लट्, Present), Prathama-puruṣa (3rd/प्रथम), Bahuvacana (बहुवचन), Ātmanepada (आत्मनेपद)

• śarabhākhyaḥ: (one) named Śarabha
• śarabhākhyaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śarabha (प्रातिपदिक) + ākhya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; तत्पुरुष “named Śarabha”

• payotaḥ: from milk/watery fluid
• payotaḥ: Apādāna (अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: payas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napुंसकलिङ्ग, Ablative (5th/पञ्चमी), Ekavacana; Vedic/irregular form for payasaḥ/payasaḥ—“from milk/water”

• yamasya: of Yama
• yamasya: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yama (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Ṣaṣṭhī, Ekavacana

• bhāryā: wife
• bhāryā: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhāryā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana

• śyāmalā: Śyāmalā
• śyāmalā: Samānādhikaraṇa (समानााधिकरण/Predicate nominal)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śyāmala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; proper name

• yā: who
• yā: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; relative pronoun “who”

• khagendra: O Garuda
• khagendra: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: khaga + indra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Sambodhana, Ekavacana

• yasmāt: from whom
• yasmāt: Apādāna (अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Ablative (5th/पञ्चमी), Ekavacana; “from whom/wherefrom”

• sadā: always
• sadā: Kriyā-viśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sadā (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; adverb (क्रियाविशेषण)

• kali-bhāryā: Kali’s wife
• kali-bhāryā: Samānādhikaraṇa (समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kali (प्रातिपदिक) + bhāryā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष “wife of Kali”

• api: also
• api: Sambandha-bodhaka (सम्बन्ध/अवधारण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; particle (निपात) “also/even”

• ca: and
• ca: Samuccaya (समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; conjunction (समुच्चयबोधक)

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (narrating to Garuda/Vinata-putra)

Pretakalpa Layer

Afterlife Stage: Yamaloka Journey

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Mythic personifications (Yama, Śyāmalā, Kali) encode the moral atmosphere: in Kali’s sway, dharma is threatened; awareness of Yama’s order urges vigilance.

Vedantic Theme: Guṇa/kalā influence on conduct; the cosmic-moral order (ṛta/dharma) mirrored in mythic genealogies.

Application: Treat ‘Kali’ as the pull toward negligence and vice; counter it with daily discipline, truthfulness, and remembrance of accountability (Yama).

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka

Geographic Context

Type: mythic court/consort association

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana Pretakalpa: Yama’s court, attendants, and moral governance; Kali-yuga warnings and dharma decline motifs

Characters & Entities

• Garuḍa (Khagendra)
• Yama
• Śyāmalā
• Kali
• Śarabha

FAQs

What is the importance of Śyāmalā in the Garuḍa Purāṇa?

This verse identifies Śyāmalā as Yama’s consort and also links her with Kali, indicating a personified association with Yama’s domain and the darker forces connected with decline and moral disorder.

How does this verse contribute to the Garuḍa Purāṇa’s picture of Yama’s realm?

By naming figures like Śarabha and Śyāmalā, the text maps Yama’s world through specific beings and relationships, a common Purāṇic method for describing the structure and personnel of the afterlife administration.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

The verse encourages reflection on moral order (dharma) versus decline (kali): living ethically and performing sincere rites (śrāddha, charity, restraint) aligns one away from the fearful jurisdiction symbolized by Yama’s domain.