Shloka 27

Ajāna Lineages, Divine Classes, Ṛṣi Catalogues, and the Merit of Śravaṇa-Smaraṇa

Devanagari script

नस्मरन्तोन्तरं नित्यं ये भुञ्जन्ति नराधमाः / तैर्भुक्ता सततं विष्ठा सदा क्रिमिशतैर्युता

Transliteration

nasmarantontaraṃ nityaṃ ye bhuñjanti narādhamāḥ / tairbhuktā satataṃ viṣṭhā sadā krimiśatairyutā

Translation

Те низшие из людей, что постоянно едят, не памятуя в себе Божественного, — в ином мире они непрестанно вкушают нечистоты, испещрённые сотнями червей.

Word by Word

• न: not
• न: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/negation marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्यय (negative particle)

• स्मरन्तः: remembering
• स्मरन्तः: Karta (कर्ता/agent)
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्मृ (धातु)
• Form: वर्तमान-कृदन्त (शतृ-प्रत्यय), परस्मैपदी; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; present active participle

• अन्तरम्: the interval; the in-between (time)
• अन्तरम्: Karma (कर्म/object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अन्तर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• नित्यम्: always
• नित्यम्: Adhikarana (अधिकरण/time)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नित्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषणरूपेण अव्ययीभूतम् (adverbial accusative)

• ये: who
• ये: Karta (कर्ता/subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; relative pronoun

• भुञ्जन्ति: eat; partake
• भुञ्जन्ति: Kriya (क्रिया/predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भुज् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), परस्मैपद; प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), बहुवचन

• नराधमाः: the lowest of men
• नराधमाः: Karta (कर्ता/subject apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नर + अधम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (नराणाम् अधमाः); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन

• तैः: by them
• तैः: Karana (करण/instrument/agent in passive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), बहुवचन; instrumental pronoun

• भुक्ता: eaten
• भुक्ता: Kriya (क्रिया/passive participle)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भुज् (धातु)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त-प्रत्यय), कर्मणि/कर्तरि प्रयोग; स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; agrees with ‘विष्ठा’

• सततम्: continually
• सततम्: Adhikarana (अधिकरण/time)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सतत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषणरूपेण अव्ययीभूतम् (adverbial accusative)

• विष्ठा: feces
• विष्ठा: Karta (कर्ता/subject of passive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विष्ठा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• सदा: always
• सदा: Adhikarana (अधिकरण/time)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सदा (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (adverb of time)

• क्रिमिशतैः: with hundreds of worms
• क्रिमिशतैः: Sahakari (सहकारी/associative-instrumental)
• Type: Noun
• Root: क्रिमि + शत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (क्रिमिणां शतैः/क्रिमिशतैः); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), बहुवचन

• युता: joined; accompanied
• युता: Visheshana (विशेषण/qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: युत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; विशेषणम् (qualifies ‘विष्ठा’)

Speaker

Lord Vishnu

Pretakalpa Layer

Afterlife Stage: Naraka

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Failure to remember the Divine while consuming food (bhoga without smaraṇa) yields a corresponding degrading afterlife experience.

Vedantic Theme: Mind’s orientation (smṛti) shapes karma and post-mortem experience; pramāda binds, remembrance purifies.

Application: Practice anna-smarana: offer mentally to Viṣṇu, recite a short mantra before meals, eat with gratitude and restraint.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: bibhatsa

Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka

Geographic Context

Type: infernal region

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana Pretakalpa: karmic correspondences and naraka descriptions (general); Garuda Purana 3.9.25-26 (value of stuti/śravaṇa; māyā-delusion)

Characters & Entities

• Vishnu
• Garuda

FAQs

What is the importance of remembering the Divine while eating in the Garuda Purana?

This verse treats inner remembrance (smarana) during meals as a dharmic discipline; neglecting it is framed as a moral lapse that produces severe post-death consequences.

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

It links a habitual action in life (eating without inner remembrance) to a specific punitive experience in the afterlife, illustrating the Garuda Purana theme that conduct shapes the preta’s suffering through karma.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Pause briefly before meals for prayer or mindful remembrance, eat with gratitude and restraint, and treat food as sacred rather than merely sensory consumption.