Shloka 14

Nāma-mahātmya: Liberation through Salutation, Chanting, and the Mantra “Namo Nārāyaṇāya”

Devanagari script

नमः कृष्णाच्युतानन्तवासुदेवेत्युदीरितम् / यैर्भावभावितैर्विप्रन ते यमपुरं ययुः

Transliteration

namaḥ kṛṣṇācyutānantavāsudevetyudīritam / yairbhāvabhāvitairviprana te yamapuraṃ yayuḥ

Translation

โอ พราหมณ์ทั้งหลาย! ผู้ใดมีจิตอาบด้วยภักติแล้วเปล่งวาจา “นมะห์แด่พระกฤษณะ อจยุตะ อนันตะ และวาสุเทวะ” ผู้นั้นย่อมไม่ไปสู่นครของยมราช

Word by Word

• namaḥ: salutation
• namaḥ: Sambandha (Interjection/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: namas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (नमः-शब्दः), नमस्कारार्थक निपात

• kṛṣṇa: Kṛṣṇa
• kṛṣṇa: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṛṣṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; नामपद (सम्बोधनार्थे अपि)

• acyuta: Acyuta
• acyuta: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: acyuta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; नामपद

• ananta: Ananta
• ananta: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ananta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; नामपद

• vāsudeva: Vāsudeva
• vāsudeva: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vāsudeva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; नामपद

• iti: thus
• iti: Sambandha (Quotation marker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (अव्यय)
• Form: उक्त्यर्थक अव्यय (quotative particle)

• udīritam: uttered/recited
• udīritam: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ud-īr (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त (Past passive participle), नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया, एकवचन

• yaiḥ: by whom
• yaiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), बहुवचन; सम्बन्धक सर्वनाम

• bhāva-bhāvitaiḥ: by those imbued with devotion
• bhāva-bhāvitaiḥ: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: bhāva (प्रातिपदिक) + bhāvita (प्रातिपदिक; √bhū/√bhāv क्त)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया, बहुवचन; तृतीया-सम्बन्धे ‘भावेन भाविताः’ (endowed/imbued with devotion)

• viprāḥ: brāhmaṇas
• viprāḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vipra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचन

• te: those
• te: Karta (Subject apposition/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; सर्वनाम

• yamapuram: Yama’s city (hell)
• yamapuram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yamapura (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः: ‘यमस्य पुरम्’

• yayuḥ: went
• yayuḥ: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: yā (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect/लिट्), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), बहुवचन

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (teaching Garuda/Vinata-putra)

Pretakalpa Layer

Afterlife Stage: Yamaloka Journey

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Bhāva-saturated utterance of Vishnu’s names (Kṛṣṇa, Acyuta, Ananta, Vāsudeva) grants exemption from Yama’s realm.

Vedantic Theme: Lord as antaryāmin and ultimate refuge; bhakti overrides punitive trajectories of karma by reorientation to Bhagavān.

Application: Practice daily namaskāra-japa of these names with attentive devotion; cultivate bhāva (inner feeling) rather than mechanical recitation.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: adbhuta

Geographic Context

Type: city

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana Pretakalpa: discussions of Yamadūtas vs Vishnudūtas and nāma as protection (nearby nāma-mahātmya sequence)

Characters & Entities

• Krishna
• Acyuta
• Ananta
• Vasudeva
• Yama
• Yamapura

FAQs

What is the importance of chanting Vishnu’s names in the Garuda Purana?

This verse states that sincerely uttering the divine names—Kṛṣṇa, Acyuta, Ananta, and Vāsudeva—protects a person from being taken to Yama’s realm, emphasizing nāma as a decisive spiritual safeguard.

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

It implies two trajectories: those without such devotion are subject to Yama’s jurisdiction, while those whose consciousness is steeped in bhāva while invoking Vishnu’s names avoid the route to Yamapura.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Cultivate regular nāma-japa and remembrance of Vishnu so that devotion becomes natural; in crisis or at life’s end, the mind more readily turns to these names rather than fear.