Shloka 1

Śrāddha Vidhi (Pārvaṇa-Śrāddha): Invitations, Arghya, Protective Rites, Piṇḍa Offering, Dakṣiṇā, and Visarjana

Devanagari script

नाम सप्तदशोत्तरद्विशततमो ऽध्यायः ब्रह्मोवाच / व्यास ! श्राद्धमहं वक्ष्ये भुक्तिमुक्तिप्रदं नृणाम् / पूर्वं निमन्त्रयेद्विप्रान्विशेषाद्ब्रह्मचारिणः

Transliteration

nāma saptadaśottaradviśatatamo 'dhyāyaḥ brahmovāca / vyāsa ! śrāddhamahaṃ vakṣye bhuktimuktipradaṃ nṛṇām / pūrvaṃ nimantrayedviprānviśeṣādbrahmacāriṇaḥ

Translation

พระพรหมตรัสว่า “โอ้พระวยาสะ เราจักกล่าวถึงพิธีศราทธะ ซึ่งประทานทั้งความสมบูรณ์ในโลกและความหลุดพ้นแก่ชนทั้งหลาย ก่อนอื่นพึงนิมนต์พราหมณ์ โดยเฉพาะพรหมจารี”

Word by Word

• nāma: named/indeed
• nāma: None
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: nāma (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (marker: ‘named/indeed’)

• saptadaśottara-dviśatatamaḥ: two-hundred-seventeenth
• saptadaśottara-dviśatatamaḥ: Karta (Qualifier/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: saptadaśa (संख्या) + uttara (प्रातिपदिक) + dviśata (संख्या) + tama (तद्धित)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — Nominative singular; द्विगु/संख्यासमास (217th) qualifying adhyāyaḥ

• adhyāyaḥ: chapter
• adhyāyaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: adhyāya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — Nominative singular

• brahmā: Brahmā
• brahmā: Karta (Speaker/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन — Nominative singular

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriya (Speech act/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vac (वच्)
• Form: लिट् (परोक्षभूत), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन — Perfect, 3rd person singular

• vyāsa: O Vyāsa
• vyāsa: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vyāsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन, एकवचन — Vocative singular

• śrāddham: śrāddha rite
• śrāddham: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śrāddha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन — Accusative singular

• aham: I
• aham: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: उत्तमपुरुष-सर्वनाम, प्रथमा, एकवचन — Nominative singular

• vakṣye: will explain
• vakṣye: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vac (वच्)
• Form: लृट् (भविष्यत्), उत्तमपुरुष, एकवचन — Simple future, 1st person singular

• bhukti-mukti-pradam: granting enjoyment and liberation
• bhukti-mukti-pradam: Karma (Object qualifier/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bhukti (प्रातिपदिक) + mukti (प्रातिपदिक) + prada (कृदन्त; √dā)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन — Accusative singular; द्वन्द्व-पूर्वपद + तत्पुरुष (bhukti ca mukti ca tayor pradām) qualifying śrāddham

• nṛṇām: of men
• nṛṇām: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nṛ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी, बहुवचन — Genitive plural

• pūrvam: first
• pūrvam: None
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: pūrva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कालवाचक अव्यय (adverb: first/before)

• nimantrayet: should invite
• nimantrayet: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ni (उपसर्ग) + √mantr (मन्त्र्)
• Form: विधिलिङ्, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन — Optative, 3rd person singular

• viprān: brāhmaṇas
• viprān: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vipra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, बहुवचन — Accusative plural

• viśeṣāt: especially
• viśeṣāt: None
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: viśeṣa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पञ्चमी-एकवचन रूपेण अव्ययीभूत (ablatival adverb: especially)

• brahmacāriṇaḥ: brahmacārins (celibate students)
• brahmacāriṇaḥ: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahmacārin (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, बहुवचन — Accusative plural (Vedic/epic variant ending)

Speaker

Brahma

Pretakalpa Layer

Afterlife Stage: Pretayoni

Shraddha Ritual

Beneficiary: Pitr

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Śrāddha as a dharmic rite that yields both bhukti (well-being) and mukti (liberation); priority of inviting qualified brāhmaṇas, especially brahmacārins, for ritual efficacy and purity.

Vedantic Theme: Purification of mind through niṣkāma-karma and reverence to lineage; ritual as a support (sādhana) that can culminate in higher good when aligned with sattva and right intention.

Application: When performing ancestral rites, prioritize integrity: invite disciplined, learned participants; treat the rite as ethical remembrance and gratitude, not mere social display.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: karuna

Geographic Context

Type: ritual-space (gṛha/śrāddha-maṇḍapa implied)

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana Pretakalpa: emphasis on Śrāddha/pinda as aid to preta’s journey (broad internal linkage); Garuda Purana Śrāddha-kalpa chapters: repeated stress on brāhmaṇa-bhojana and proper invitation

Characters & Entities

• Brahma
• Vyasa
• Brahmacharins
• Brahmanas

FAQs

What is the importance of Śrāddha in the Garuda Purana?

This verse states that Śrāddha is a rite that yields both bhukti (worldly welfare) and mukti (liberation), making it spiritually and ethically significant.

How does this verse explain the path of the soul?

By introducing Śrāddha as a means connected to liberation, it implies that proper ancestral rites support the deceased’s onward journey and the family’s dharmic continuity.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Begin any Śrāddha or remembrance rite with respectful invitation and hospitality to qualified, disciplined spiritual practitioners, prioritizing sincerity and purity of conduct.