Shloka 64
Svapnādhāya (Dream-Chapter): Causes, Forms, Nourishment, and Liberation of Pretas
ब्राह्मण उवाच / उपवासपरो नित्यं कृच्छ्रचान्द्रायणे रतः / व्रतैश्च विविधैः पूतो न प्रेतो जायते नरः
brāhmaṇa uvāca / upavāsaparo nityaṃ kṛcchracāndrāyaṇe rataḥ / vrataiśca vividhaiḥ pūto na preto jāyate naraḥ
બ્રાહ્મણે કહ્યું—જે મનુષ્ય નિત્ય ઉપવાસમાં પરાયણ રહે, કૃચ્છ્ર અને ચાન્દ્રાયણ તપમાં રત રહે, અને વિવિધ વ્રતોથી પવિત્ર બને—તે પ્રેત થતો નથી.
Brāhmaṇa (a learned interlocutor within the narrative)
Afterlife Stage: Pretayoni
Concept: Regular fasting and expiatory austerities purify and prevent preta-birth.
Vedantic Theme: Antahkarana-shuddhi through tapas; karma is refined by disciplined restraint.
Application: Adopt periodic fasting and regulated vows under guidance; use prayaschitta-like observances to cleanse lapses.
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: vira
Type: ashrama
Related Themes: Garuda Purana Pretakalpa: prescriptions of vrata/tapas to avert preta condition (contextual parallel)
FAQs
This verse states that sustained fasting and observance of purificatory vratas (including Kṛcchra and Cāndrāyaṇa) purify a person so that they do not fall into the preta condition after death.
It links ethical-ritual purification in life with a favorable post-death outcome: disciplined penance helps prevent an unsettled, preta-like after-death state, implying smoother transition in the afterlife.
Adopt regular self-discipline—periodic fasting, sincere vows, and repentance-based practices—aimed at inner purification and ethical living, rather than mere ritual display.