Shloka 32

Nāmāṣṭottara-dviśata: Gaṇa–Chandas–Yati Catalogue and Mnemonic Coding

Devanagari script

सप्तर्त्वब्धिः कोकिलकमत्यष्टिः स्याच्च पूर्ववत् / भूतर्त्वश्वैः कुसुमितलता म्तौ न्यौ ययौ धृतिः

Transliteration

saptartvabdhiḥ kokilakamatyaṣṭiḥ syācca pūrvavat / bhūtartvaśvaiḥ kusumitalatā mtau nyau yayau dhṛtiḥ

Translation

Seperti sebelumnya, hendaklah difahami ini sebagai ungkapan berkias/tersandi: “tujuh musim dan lautan”, “burung kokila, kama (hasrat), dan lapan”, dan demikian juga “makhluk, musim, dan kuda”. Maka “sulur yang berbunga”—keteguhan (dhṛti)—melangkah, seolah menuju pasangan mtau/nyau, menurut kaedah terdahulu.

Word by Word

• सप्तर्त्वब्धिः: with seven seasons/ocean (count-marker)
• सप्तर्त्वब्धिः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सप्त (प्रातिपदिक) + ऋतु (प्रातिपदिक) + अब्धि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; द्विगुसमासः (सप्त + ऋतु) तथा अब्धि-सम्बद्धः (count-marker)

• कोकिलकमति-अष्टिः: kokilakamati-aṣṭi (metrical designation)
• कोकिलकमति-अष्टिः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कोकिल (प्रातिपदिक) + कमति (प्रातिपदिक) + अष्टि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; समासः (कोकिलकमतिः + अष्टिः) (छन्दः/गणसूचक-सम्बद्धः)

• स्यात्: may be/is to be
• स्यात्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √अस् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• पूर्ववत्: as before
• पूर्ववत्: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पूर्ववत् (अव्यय; पूर्व + वत्)
• Form: अव्यय, प्रकारवाचक (adverb: ‘as before’)

• भूतर्त्वश्वैः: with past-seasons-horses (count-marker)
• भूतर्त्वश्वैः: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भूत (प्रातिपदिक) + ऋतु (प्रातिपदिक) + अश्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, बहुवचन; समासः (भूत-ऋतु-अश्व) (count-marker)

• कुसुमितलता: flowering creeper
• कुसुमितलता: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कुसुमित (कृदन्त; √कुसुम्/√सुम्) + लता (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (कुसुमिता लता)

• म्तौ: mtau (two ‘mtu’ groups)
• म्तौ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: म्तु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, द्विवचन (छन्दः-गणसूचक-शब्दः)

• न्यौ: nyau (two ‘nyu’ groups)
• न्यौ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: न्यु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, द्विवचन (छन्दः-गणसूचक-शब्दः)

• ययौ: went
• ययौ: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √या (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (परोक्षभूत/Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• धृतिः: Dhṛti (metre/name)
• धृतिः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धृति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन (छन्दः-नाम/गणसूचक)

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (addressing Garuda)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Encoded knowledge transmission (bhūta-saṅkhyā) as a mnemonic device for prosodic patterns.

Vedantic Theme: Śabda as layered: surface meaning and coded intent; disciplined interpretation (lakṣaṇā/saṅketa) to reach intended knowledge.

Application: Apply bhūta-saṅkhyā decoding (e.g., seasons=6/7 depending on convention, ocean=4, horses=7, etc.) to reconstruct gaṇa/mātrā counts; verify against ‘pūrvavat’ (earlier rule) when scanning metres.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana 1.209 (use of coded numerals and gaṇa markers); ‘pūrvavat’ indicates reliance on earlier decoding rule in the same section

Characters & Entities

• Vishnu
• Garuda

FAQs

What is the importance of cryptic or coded wording in the Garuda Purana?

This verse signals that certain lines are to be understood “as before” using an established interpretive method, indicating that the text sometimes encodes meanings through counts, symbols, and compressed expressions.

How does this verse explain the path of the soul?

Indirectly: rather than describing the soul’s journey, it points to a hermeneutic technique used in these chapters—important because many afterlife and ritual details may be presented in compact, symbolic form requiring traditional unpacking.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

When studying Garuda Purana death-ritual teachings, rely on consistent chapter context and traditional commentarial methods instead of reading every compound literally; this prevents misinterpretation of ritual and dharma instructions.