Shloka 8

Sapindīkaraṇa: Timing, Eligibility, Gotra Rules, and Yearlong Śrāddha

with Vṛṣotsarga and Ghaṭa-dāna

Devanagari script

संवत्सरे तु सम्पूर्णे कुर्यात्पिण्ड प्रवेशनम् / पिण्डप्रवेशविधना तस्य नित्यं मृताह्निकम्

Transliteration

saṃvatsare tu sampūrṇe kuryātpiṇḍa praveśanam / piṇḍapraveśavidhanā tasya nityaṃ mṛtāhnikam

Translation

جب پورا ایک سال مکمل ہو جائے تو ‘پِنڈ پرویش’ کی رسم کرنی چاہیے۔ پِنڈ پرویش کی مقررہ विधی سے میّت کے روزانہ مِرتاہنِک اعمال باقاعدہ طور پر منظم ہو کر تکمیل پاتے ہیں۔

Word by Word

• संवत्सरे: in a year; at the end of the year
• संवत्सरे: Adhikarana (Time-locus/कालाधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: संवत्सर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (अधिकरण), एकवचन

• तु: but; indeed
• तु: Sambandha (Particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अवधान/विरोधार्थक-निपात (but/indeed)

• सम्पूर्णे: when completed
• सम्पूर्णे: Adhikarana (Locative absolute/सति-सप्तमी)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सम्-पूर्ण (प्रातिपदिक; कृदन्तभावः)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; 'संवत्सरे ... सम्पूर्णे' = सति-सप्तमी (when the year is complete)

• कुर्यात्: one should do
• कुर्यात्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (आज्ञा/विधान), प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• पिण्डप्रवेशनम्: the entering/merging of the piṇḍa (rite)
• पिण्डप्रवेशनम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पिण्ड-प्रवेशन (प्रातिपदिक; पिण्ड + प्रवेशन्/प्रवेशन)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (कर्म), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (पिण्डस्य प्रवेशः/प्रवेशनम्)

• पिण्डप्रवेशविधना: according to the procedure of piṇḍa-entry
• पिण्डप्रवेशविधना: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पिण्ड-प्रवेश-विधान (प्रातिपदिक; पिण्ड + प्रवेश + विधान)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; बहुपद-षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः; विशेषणम् (विधानयुक्ता/विधानेन)

• तस्य: of him/of that (person)
• तस्य: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• नित्यम्: daily; always
• नित्यम्: Kriya-visheshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नित्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्ययीभावेन प्रयोगः; क्रियाविशेषण (always/daily)

• मृताह्निकम्: the daily rites for the deceased
• मृताह्निकम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मृत-अह्निक (प्रातिपदिक; मृत + अह्निक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कर्मधारय/तत्पुरुषभावः (मृतस्य अह्निकम् = मृतक-सम्बन्धि-दैनिककर्म)

Speaker

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

Shraddha Ritual

Beneficiary: Pitr

Timing: After completion of one full year (saṁvatsara)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Time-bound completion: after one year, piṇḍa-praveśa is performed, by which the deceased’s daily funerary observances are properly concluded/regularized.

Vedantic Theme: Kāla (time) as an ordering principle in karma-kāṇḍa; saṁskāra completion supports psychological and social dharma while acknowledging impermanence.

Application: Observe the one-year rite with correct procedure; thereafter maintain appropriate periodic śrāddha rather than indefinite daily mṛtāhnikam.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: karuna

Geographic Context

Type: household/ritual space at the one-year mark

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana: annual śrāddha/saṁvatsarika rites; mṛtāhnikam and its cessation/regularization (contextual)

Characters & Entities

• Pitris
• Preta

FAQs

What is the importance of piṇḍa-praveśa in the Garuda Purana?

This verse states that after completing one year, piṇḍa-praveśa should be performed as the prescribed rite that formally regularizes/concludes the deceased’s daily funerary observances.

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

By emphasizing a one-year milestone and a specific rite (piṇḍa-praveśa), the verse reflects the Garuda Purana’s ritual framework for supporting the departed’s post-death condition (preta-related observances) and transitioning the rites into an ancestral (pitṛ) orientation.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

If following traditional practice, observe the first-year śrāddha cycle carefully and perform the one-year completion rite with proper guidance (family priest/ācārya), treating it as a disciplined act of remembrance, duty (dharma), and care for ancestors.