Shloka 14

Karma-vipāka: Truth, Yama’s Judgment, and the Marks of Sin in Rebirth

Devanagari script

अयाज्ययाजको याति ग्राहमसूकरतां द्विजः / खरो वै बहुयाजी स्यात्काको निर्मन्त्रभोजनात्

Transliteration

ayājyayājako yāti grāhamasūkaratāṃ dvijaḥ / kharo vai bahuyājī syātkāko nirmantrabhojanāt

Translation

അയാജ്യനുവേണ്ടി യാഗം നടത്തിക്കുന്ന ദ്വിജൻ ഗ്രാഹം അല്ലെങ്കിൽ പന്നിയുടെ യോനിയിൽ ജനിക്കും. ദോഷത്തോടെ പല യാഗം ചെയ്യുന്നവൻ കഴുതയാകും; ക്ഷണമില്ലാതെ ഭക്ഷിക്കുന്നവൻ കാക്കയാകും.

Word by Word

• a-yājya-yājakaḥ: a priest who performs sacrifice for the unworthy
• a-yājya-yājakaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: a-yājya (प्रातिपदिक) + yājaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष (‘unfit to be sacrificed for’ + ‘sacrificer/priest’)

• yāti: goes/attains
• yāti: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: yā (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• grāha-masūkaratām: the state of being a crocodile and a boar
• grāha-masūkaratām: Karma (कर्म) (attained state)
• Type: Noun
• Root: grāha (प्रातिपदिक) + masūkara (प्रातिपदिक) + -tā (प्रत्यय)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; द्वन्द्व (grāha + masūkara) + ता-प्रत्यय (abstract state)

• dvijaḥ: a Brahmin (twice-born)
• dvijaḥ: Karta (कर्ता) (apposition to ayājya-yājakaḥ)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dvija (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• kharaḥ: a donkey
• kharaḥ: Karta (कर्ता) (predicate noun)
• Type: Noun
• Root: khara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• vai: indeed
• vai: Avyaya (अव्यय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vai (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (emphatic particle)

• bahu-yājī: one who performs many sacrifices
• bahu-yājī: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bahu (प्रातिपदिक) + yājin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष (‘many’ + ‘sacrificer’)

• syāt: would become
• syāt: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: as (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• kākaḥ: a crow
• kākaḥ: Karta (कर्ता) (predicate noun)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• nir-mantra-bhojanāt: from eating without (proper) invitation/ritual formula
• nir-mantra-bhojanāt: Hetu (हेतु)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nir- (उपसर्ग) + mantra (प्रातिपदिक) + bhojana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष (‘without mantra/invitation’ + ‘eating’), ablative of cause

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (teaching Garuda/Vainateya)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Ritual acts (yajña, bhojana) require adhikara (fitness), proper intention, and proper invitation; misuse yields adverse rebirth.

Vedantic Theme: Karma shaped by intention and dharmic conformity; ritual without dharma becomes binding rather than liberating.

Application: Perform rites only with proper eligibility and motive; avoid showy/proliferative ritualism; accept food only when duly invited and in proper context.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: bhayanaka

Secondary Rasa: bibhatsa

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana 2.46 (lists of ritual/ethical faults and corresponding rebirths)

Characters & Entities

• Dwija
• Yajaka

FAQs

What is the importance of ritual eligibility (ayājya) in the Garuda Purana?

This verse warns that performing yajña services for an unqualified or ritually ineligible patron is a serious breach of dharma, bringing a degrading rebirth (such as crocodile or hog), emphasizing that ritual acts must be aligned with purity and right qualification.

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

It links specific unethical actions to karmic outcomes in future embodiment: misconduct in sacred rites and social-religious norms ripens into lower births, showing the Garuda Purana’s moral causality governing the jīva’s post-death trajectory.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Observe integrity in religious duties: priests and practitioners should uphold eligibility and propriety in ceremonies, avoid performative or improper ritual excess, and follow respectful social-religious etiquette such as accepting meals only when duly invited.