Shloka 97

Āśauca, Daśāha Piṇḍa-Rites, Vṛṣotsarga, Sāpiṇḍīkaraṇa, and the Yama-mārga

Path to Yama

Devanagari script

अष्टादशोदिने तार्क्ष्य तत्पुर प्राप्नुयादसौ / पुष्पभद्रा नदी यत्र न्यग्रोधः प्रियदर्शनः

Transliteration

aṣṭādaśodine tārkṣya tatpura prāpnuyādasau / puṣpabhadrā nadī yatra nyagrodhaḥ priyadarśanaḥ

Translation

ഹേ താർക്ഷ്യ (ഗരുഡാ)! പതിനെട്ടാം ദിവസം അവൻ ആ നഗരത്തിലെത്തുന്നു. അവിടെ പുഷ്പഭദ്രാ നദിയും ദർശനസുഖകരമായ ആൽമരവും നിലകൊള്ളുന്നു.

Word by Word

• aṣṭādaśa-udine: on the eighteenth day
• aṣṭādaśa-udine: Adhikarana (Locative/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: aṣṭādaśa (प्रातिपदिक) + udina (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन; समासः—षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (aṣṭādaśasya udine)

• tārkṣya: O Tārkṣya (Garuda)
• tārkṣya: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tārkṣya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (8th/सम्बोधन), एकवचन

• tat-puram: that city
• tat-puram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tat (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + pura (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारय/षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (tasya puram)

• prāpnuyāt: should reach
• prāpnuyāt: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √āp (धातु) उपसर्गः pra-
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपद

• asau: he
• asau: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asau (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• puṣpabhadrā: Puṣpabhadrā (name)
• puṣpabhadrā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: puṣpa (प्रातिपदिक) + bhadrā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारय (puṣpā eva bhadrā)

• nadī: river
• nadī: Apposition (समानाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nadī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन

• yatra: where
• yatra: Adhikarana (Locative sense/अधिकरणार्थ)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yatra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; सम्बन्धबोधक-अव्यय (relative adverb: 'where')

• nyagrodhaḥ: banyan tree
• nyagrodhaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nyagrodha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन

• priyadarśanaḥ: pleasant to behold
• priyadarśanaḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: priya (प्रातिपदिक) + darśana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारय (priyaṃ darśanam yasya)

Speaker

Lord Vishnu

Pretakalpa Layer

Afterlife Stage: Yamaloka Journey

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: The after-death journey unfolds in ordered stages; the soul encounters fixed stations shaped by cosmic law.

Vedantic Theme: niyati (order) within saṃsāra; the jīva’s passage under karma’s governance

Application: Contemplate mortality and prepare through dharma and śrāddha so the journey is supported and not bewildering.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka

Geographic Context

Type: city-river-grove (waystation)

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana, Pretakalpa: descriptions of the preta’s day-by-day route and stations (tīrtha-like markers, rivers, trees); Garuda Purana: emphasis that offerings reach the preta at specific stages

Characters & Entities

• Garuda (Tarkshya)
• Preta (departed soul)
• Puṣpabhadrā River
• Nyagrodha (banyan tree)

FAQs

What is the importance of the eighteenth day in the Garuda Purana’s description of the after-death journey?

This verse marks a specific milestone: by the eighteenth day, the departed (preta) is said to reach a defined station (“that city”), indicating the Purana’s structured, day-counted mapping of the post-death route.

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

It presents the journey as a sequence of locations encountered over time, naming a city-like station and nearby landmarks (the Puṣpabhadrā river and a beautiful banyan), reinforcing that the preta’s route is described with concrete waypoints.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

It encourages timely performance of post-death rites with a sense of continuity and care, reminding families to observe prescribed day-based observances with steadiness and reverence.