Shloka 8

Sapindīkaraṇa: Timing, Eligibility, Gotra Rules, and Yearlong Śrāddha

with Vṛṣotsarga and Ghaṭa-dāna

Devanagari script

संवत्सरे तु सम्पूर्णे कुर्यात्पिण्ड प्रवेशनम् / पिण्डप्रवेशविधना तस्य नित्यं मृताह्निकम्

Transliteration

saṃvatsare tu sampūrṇe kuryātpiṇḍa praveśanam / piṇḍapraveśavidhanā tasya nityaṃ mṛtāhnikam

Translation

ഒരു വർഷം പൂർണ്ണമായാൽ ‘പിണ്ഡപ്രവേശം’ എന്ന കർമ്മം നടത്തണം. പിണ്ഡപ്രവേശവിധിയാൽ മരിച്ചവന്റെ നിത്യ മൃതാഹ്നികകർമ്മങ്ങൾ വിധിപൂർവ്വം ക്രമീകരിച്ച് സമാപ്തമാകുന്നു.

Word by Word

• संवत्सरे: in a year; at the end of the year
• संवत्सरे: Adhikarana (Time-locus/कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: संवत्सर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (अधिकरण), एकवचन

• तु: but; indeed
• तु: Sambandha (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधान/विरोधार्थक-निपात (but/indeed)

• सम्पूर्णे: when completed
• सम्पूर्णे: Adhikarana (Locative absolute/सति-सप्तमी)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सम्-पूर्ण (प्रातिपदिक; कृदन्तभावः)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; 'संवत्सरे ... सम्पूर्णे' = सति-सप्तमी (when the year is complete)

• कुर्यात्: one should do
• कुर्यात्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (आज्ञा/विधान), प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• पिण्डप्रवेशनम्: the entering/merging of the piṇḍa (rite)
• पिण्डप्रवेशनम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पिण्ड-प्रवेशन (प्रातिपदिक; पिण्ड + प्रवेशन्/प्रवेशन)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (कर्म), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (पिण्डस्य प्रवेशः/प्रवेशनम्)

• पिण्डप्रवेशविधना: according to the procedure of piṇḍa-entry
• पिण्डप्रवेशविधना: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पिण्ड-प्रवेश-विधान (प्रातिपदिक; पिण्ड + प्रवेश + विधान)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; बहुपद-षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः; विशेषणम् (विधानयुक्ता/विधानेन)

• तस्य: of him/of that (person)
• तस्य: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• नित्यम्: daily; always
• नित्यम्: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नित्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययीभावेन प्रयोगः; क्रियाविशेषण (always/daily)

• मृताह्निकम्: the daily rites for the deceased
• मृताह्निकम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मृत-अह्निक (प्रातिपदिक; मृत + अह्निक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्मधारय/तत्पुरुषभावः (मृतस्य अह्निकम् = मृतक-सम्बन्धि-दैनिककर्म)

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (in instruction to Garuda/Vinata-putra)

Shraddha Ritual

Beneficiary: Pitr

Timing: After completion of one full year (saṁvatsara)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Time-bound completion: after one year, piṇḍa-praveśa is performed, by which the deceased’s daily funerary observances are properly concluded/regularized.

Vedantic Theme: Kāla (time) as an ordering principle in karma-kāṇḍa; saṁskāra completion supports psychological and social dharma while acknowledging impermanence.

Application: Observe the one-year rite with correct procedure; thereafter maintain appropriate periodic śrāddha rather than indefinite daily mṛtāhnikam.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: karuna

Geographic Context

Type: household/ritual space at the one-year mark

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana: annual śrāddha/saṁvatsarika rites; mṛtāhnikam and its cessation/regularization (contextual)

Characters & Entities

• Pitris
• Preta

FAQs

What is the importance of piṇḍa-praveśa in the Garuda Purana?

This verse states that after completing one year, piṇḍa-praveśa should be performed as the prescribed rite that formally regularizes/concludes the deceased’s daily funerary observances.

How does this verse explain the path of the soul after death?

By emphasizing a one-year milestone and a specific rite (piṇḍa-praveśa), the verse reflects the Garuda Purana’s ritual framework for supporting the departed’s post-death condition (preta-related observances) and transitioning the rites into an ancestral (pitṛ) orientation.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

If following traditional practice, observe the first-year śrāddha cycle carefully and perform the one-year completion rite with proper guidance (family priest/ācārya), treating it as a disciplined act of remembrance, duty (dharma), and care for ancestors.