Shloka 49

Ahaṅkāra-Tripartition and the Rise of Indriyas, Devatās, and Cosmic Administrators

Devanagari script

एकादशविधा ह्येवं मनवः परिकीर्तिताः / पितॄणां सप्तकं चैवेत्याद्याः संजज्ञिरे खग

Transliteration

ekādaśavidhā hyevaṃ manavaḥ parikīrtitāḥ / pitṝṇāṃ saptakaṃ caivetyādyāḥ saṃjajñire khaga

Translation

Ainsi, les Manu sont proclamés au nombre de onze; et de même le groupe septuple des Pitṛ, les pères ancestraux. De ces êtres primordiaux, ô Oiseau (Garuda), naquirent les lignées les plus anciennes.

Word by Word

• ekādaśa-vidhāḥ: of eleven kinds
• ekādaśa-vidhāḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ekādaśa (प्रातिपदिक) + vidhā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Plural (बहुवचन); adjective qualifying manavaḥ

• hi: indeed/for
• hi: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: Particle (निपात), explanatory/emphatic

• evaṃ: thus
• evaṃ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: evaṃ (अव्यय)
• Form: Adverb (क्रियाविशेषण अव्यय)

• manavaḥ: Manus
• manavaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: manu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Plural (बहुवचन)

• parikīrtitāḥ: are proclaimed
• parikīrtitāḥ: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Verb
• Root: pari-√kīrt (धातु)
• Form: Past passive participle (कर्मणि क्त), Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Plural (बहुवचन)

• pitṝṇām: of the Pitṛs (ancestors)
• pitṝṇām: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pitṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Plural (बहुवचन)

• saptakam: a group of seven
• saptakam: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: saptaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative/Accusative (1st/2nd प्रथमा/द्वितीया), Singular (एकवचन)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Conjunction/particle (समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय)

• eva: indeed
• eva: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: Emphatic particle (निश्चयार्थक/अवधारणार्थक निपात)

• iti: thus/“so”
• iti: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (अव्यय)
• Form: Quotative particle (इति-प्रयोग)

• ādyāḥ: the first (ones)
• ādyāḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ādya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Plural (बहुवचन); used substantively

• saṃjajñire: were born/arose
• saṃjajñire: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-√jan (धातु)
• Form: Perfect (लिट्), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Plural (बहुवचन), Ātmanepada (आत्मनेपद)

• khaga: O bird (Garuda)
• khaga: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: khaga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Vocative (8th/सम्बोधन), Singular (एकवचन)

Speaker

Lord Vishnu

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Cosmic governance through Manu (lawgiver) lineages and Pitṛ (ancestral) orders as foundations of social and ritual continuity.

Vedantic Theme: Īśvara-sṛṣṭi as ordered manifestation; loka-saṅgraha through lineage and duty.

Application: Honor ancestral continuity (pitṛ-tarpaṇa/śrāddha ethos) and uphold dharma as a continuation of Manu’s ordering principle.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana: cosmology/creation-genealogy passages in Purvakhanda (sarga/pratisarga style enumerations); Garuda Purana: Pitṛ-kalpa/śrāddha sections that presuppose Pitṛ classifications

Characters & Entities

• Garuda
• Manus
• Pitris

FAQs

What is the importance of the Manus and Pitris in the Garuda Purana?

This verse frames Manus and Pitṛs as foundational cosmic authorities—Manus as progenitors and law-ordainers, and Pitṛs as ancestral beings—supporting the Purana’s emphasis on dharma and ancestral rites.

How does this verse connect to Garuda Purana death rituals like śrāddha and piṇḍa-dāna?

By highlighting the Pitṛs as a defined, revered class (a sevenfold group), the verse reinforces why offerings to ancestors (śrāddha, piṇḍa-dāna) are treated as spiritually consequential duties within the text’s ritual framework.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Maintain respect for lineage and ethical order: uphold dharma in conduct, and if you follow tradition, perform periodic ancestral remembrance (e.g., śrāddha/tarpaṇa) with sincerity and charity.