Garuda Purana — Preta Kalpa, Shloka 14

Jīva-yonis (84 Lakhs), Rarity of Human Birth, Sense-Restraint, Craving, and Śraddhā-based Dharma

Devanagari script

चक्रधरो ऽपि सुरत्वं सुरभावे सकलसुरपतिर्भवितुम् / सुरपतिरूर्ध्वगतित्वं तथापि ननिवर्तते तृष्णा

Transliteration

cakradharo 'pi suratvaṃ surabhāve sakalasurapatirbhavitum / surapatirūrdhvagatitvaṃ tathāpi nanivartate tṛṣṇā

Translation

စက်ရကိုင်သူတောင် နတ်ဖြစ်ခြင်းကို ရနိုင်၏။ နတ်သဘောဖြင့် နတ်အပေါင်းတို့၏ အရှင်ဖြစ်နိုင်၏။ နတ်အရှင်ဖြစ်ပြီးနောက်လည်း အထက်ထက်သို့ တက်နိုင်သော်လည်း တဏှာသည် မပြန်လှည့်ဘဲ မဆုံးနိုင်။

Word by Word

• चक्रधरः: the discus-bearer (Viṣṇu)
• चक्रधरः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: चक्र (प्रातिपदिक) + धर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (उपपद/कर्मधारयभाव: 'चक्रं धरति'), पुल्लिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• अपि: even
• अपि: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (particle/concessive)

• सुरत्वम्: godhood
• सुरत्वम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सुरत्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), द्वितीया (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (Singular)

• सुरभावे: in the state of being a god
• सुरभावे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सुरभाव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (कर्मधारय: 'सुरः भावः'), पुल्लिङ्ग (Masculine) / नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter) प्रायः, सप्तमी (Locative/7th), एकवचन (Singular)

• सकलसुरपतिः: the lord of all gods
• सकलसुरपतिः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सकल (प्रातिपदिक) + सुरपति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कर्मधारय-समास ('सकलः सुरपतिः'), पुल्लिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• भवितुम्: to become
• भवितुम्: Prayojana (Purpose/प्रयोजन)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: तुमुन्-प्रत्ययान्त (Infinitive), अव्ययवत् प्रयोग (indeclinable infinitive)

• सुरपतिः: the lord of gods (Indra)
• सुरपतिः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सुरपति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुल्लिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• ऊर्ध्वगतित्वम्: the state of upward movement/ascension
• ऊर्ध्वगतित्वम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ऊर्ध्व (प्रातिपदिक) + गति (प्रातिपदिक) + त्व (प्रातिपदिक/प्रत्यय)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास ('ऊर्ध्वा गतिः' → 'ऊर्ध्वगति' + त्व), नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), द्वितीया (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (Singular)

• तथा: thus
• तथा: Sambandha (Adverbial/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb)

• अपि: even then
• अपि: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (particle/concessive)

• न: not
• न: Sambandha (Negation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (negation particle)

• निवर्तते: ceases / turns back
• निवर्तते: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: वृत् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present Indicative), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन (Singular); उपसर्ग: नि-

• तृष्णा: craving
• तृष्णा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तृष्णा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (in dialogue with Garuda)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Craving persists across status and realms; only inner transformation ends it, not external elevation.

Vedantic Theme: Saṃsāra persists through vāsanā/tṛṣṇā; lokāntara-gati is not mokṣa; need for vairāgya and ātma-niṣṭhā.

Application: Do not equate promotion, fame, or even ‘spiritual rank’ with freedom; practice detachment and self-inquiry alongside devotion.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: karuna

Geographic Context

Type: celestial hierarchy

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana discussions distinguishing svarga from mokṣa and warning against desire-driven merit-seeking; Nearby contrast of naraka vs svarga outcomes tied to tṛṣṇā (2.12.15)

Characters & Entities

• Devas
• Indra (implied as surapati)
• Vishnu (implied as cakradhara)

FAQs

What is the importance of tṛṣṇā (craving) in the Garuda Purana?

This verse emphasizes that craving is not solved by status, power, or even heavenly ascent; it must be addressed through inner transformation and detachment aligned with dharma.

How does this verse explain the path of the soul beyond higher realms?

It implies that rising to superior worlds is still within the cycle of desire; without uprooting tṛṣṇā, the soul remains bound to continued striving and return, rather than attaining true release.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Treat achievement and recognition as temporary; practice restraint, charity, and disciplined living to weaken craving—so spiritual progress is measured by reduced attachment, not higher “rank.”