Garuda Purana — Preta Kalpa, Shloka 48

Akālamṛtyu: Preta-state Categories and the Nārāyaṇa-bali / Ekoddiṣṭa Remedy

Devanagari script

ऊरुद्वये शतञ्चापि त्रिंशज्जङ्घाद्वये न्यसेत् / दद्याच्चतुष्टयं शिश्रे षड् दद्याद् वृषणद्वये / दश पादाङ्गुलीभागे एवमस्थीनि विन्यसेत्

Transliteration

ūrudvaye śatañcāpi triṃśajjaṅghādvaye nyaset / dadyāccatuṣṭayaṃ śiśre ṣaḍ dadyād vṛṣaṇadvaye / daśa pādāṅgulībhāge evamasthīni vinyaset

Translation

Italaga ang isandaan (buto) sa dalawang hita, at tatlumpu sa dalawang binti (ibabang bahagi). Maglaan ng apat sa ari, anim sa dalawang bayag, at sampu sa mga bahagi ng mga daliri sa paa. Sa ganitong paraan inaayos ang mga buto ayon sa bilang na ito.

Word by Word

• ūrudvaye: On the pair of thighs
• ūrudvaye: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ūrudvaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Locative (7th/सप्तमी), Singular

• śatam: Hundred
• śatam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Numeral, Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular

• ca: And
• ca: Connector
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Conjunction

• api: Also
• api: Emphasis
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: Particle

• triṃśat: Thirty
• triṃśat: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: triṃśat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Numeral, Feminine, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular

• jaṅghādvaye: On the pair of shins/calves
• jaṅghādvaye: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jaṅghādvaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Locative (7th/सप्तमी), Singular

• nyaset: Should place
• nyaset: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: as (धातु) with ni
• Form: Vidhilin Lakara (Potential), Prathama Purusha (3rd), Singular

• dadyāt: Should give/place
• dadyāt: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: dā (धातु)
• Form: Vidhilin Lakara (Potential), Prathama Purusha (3rd), Singular

• catuṣṭayam: A set of four
• catuṣṭayam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: catuṣṭaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular

• śiśre: On the penis
• śiśre: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śiśna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Locative (7th/सप्तमी), Singular (Irregular/Archaic form of śiśne)

• ṣaḍ: Six
• ṣaḍ: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ṣaṣ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Numeral, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Plural

• vṛṣaṇadvaye: On the pair of testicles
• vṛṣaṇadvaye: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vṛṣaṇadvaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Locative (7th/सप्तमी), Singular

• daśa: Ten
• daśa: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: daśan (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Numeral, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Plural

• pādāṅgulībhāge: On the toe parts
• pādāṅgulībhāge: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pādāṅgulībhāga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Locative (7th/सप्तमी), Singular

• evam: Thus/In this manner
• evam: Kriya Visheshana (Adverb)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: evam (अव्यय)
• Form: Adverb

• asthīni: Bones
• asthīni: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asthi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Plural

• vinyaset: Should place/arrange
• vinyaset: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: as (धातु) with vi+ni
• Form: Vidhilin Lakara (Potential), Prathama Purusha (3rd), Singular

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (in discourse to Garuda/Vinata-putra)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Completeness and precision in ritual mapping of the body, including private organs, without aversion or attachment.

Vedantic Theme: Dehābhimāna is transcended by seeing the body as a composite of parts; equanimity toward all limbs.

Application: Maintain ritual purity and composure; follow counts exactly; treat all body parts with equal ritual seriousness.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: bibhatsa

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana 2.40.47 (preceding counts); Garuda Purana 2.40.49-51 (symbolic substitutions: fruits, gems, metals)

Characters & Entities

• Garuda

FAQs

What is the importance of bone enumeration in the Garuda Purana?

This verse provides a precise distribution of bones by body region, supporting the Garuda Purana’s ritual-anatomical framework used when explaining pretakriyā and śrāddha-related conceptions of the embodied being after death.

How does this verse relate to the soul’s journey after death in the Garuda Purana?

By detailing bodily components, the text contextualizes how post-death rites address the departed’s condition (preta-state) and symbolically ‘reconstruct’ order and completeness through ritual knowledge of the body.

What is a practical application of this teaching today?

It encourages careful, rule-based performance of ancestral rites (where one follows traditional prescriptions) and also serves as a reminder of bodily impermanence, strengthening ethical living and detachment.