Garuda Purana — Preta Kalpa, Shloka 15

Dāna for the Preta: Supreme Gifts, Yama’s Pacification, and Viṣṇu-Smaraṇa at the Time of Death

Devanagari script

कर्पासस्य तु दानेन न भूतेभ्यो भयं भवेत् / तारयन्ति नरं गावस्त्रिविधाश्चैव पातकात्

Transliteration

karpāsasya tu dānena na bhūtebhyo bhayaṃ bhavet / tārayanti naraṃ gāvastrividhāścaiva pātakāt

Translation

کپاس کا دان کرنے سے بھوت وغیرہ کا خوف نہیں رہتا۔ اسی طرح تین قسم کی گائیں انسان کو گناہ سے پار اتار دیتی ہیں۔

Word by Word

• karpāsasya: of cotton
• karpāsasya: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: karpāsa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), एकवचन

• tu: but/indeed
• tu: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: निपातः (particle)

• dānena: by giving (as a gift)
• dānena: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dāna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), एकवचन

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (Negation/निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-निपातः

• bhūtebhyaḥ: from beings/spirits
• bhūtebhyaḥ: Apadana (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhūta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/अपादान) बहुवचन (or चतुर्थी in sense of 'to beings'); here source/ablative sense

• bhayaṃ: fear
• bhayaṃ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• bhavet: would arise/be
• bhavet: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: bhū (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• tārayanti: they ferry/save
• tārayanti: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: tṝ (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• naraṃ: a man/person
• naraṃ: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन

• gāvaḥ: cows
• gāvaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: go (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• trividhāḥ: threefold/of three kinds
• trividhāḥ: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tri (प्रातिपदिक) + vidha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; द्विगु-समासः (त्रयः विधाः यस्याः/ये) विशेषणम् (गावः)

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Conjunction/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-निपातः (conjunction)

• eva: indeed
• eva: Sambandha (Emphasis/अवधारण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारण-निपातः (emphatic particle)

• pātakāt: from sin
• pātakāt: Apadana (Source/अपादान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pātaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, पञ्चमी (5th/अपादान), एकवचन

Speaker

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

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Protective merit: certain dānas avert fear of harmful beings and cleanse pāpa; go-dāna is especially salvific.

Vedantic Theme: Ethical action (karma) as purifier of antaḥkaraṇa and as harmonizer with dharma’s cosmic order.

Application: Donate cotton (clothing/blankets) and support cow-protection or ethical dairy shelters; pair giving with repentance and resolve to avoid harmful acts.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana 2.30: sequence of dānas and their phala (2.30.14–17)

Characters & Entities

• Bhutas
• Gavah (Cows)

FAQs

What is the importance of cotton donation (karpāsa-dāna) in the Garuda Purana?

This verse states that giving cotton is a protective charity that removes fear of bhūtas (harmful spirit-beings), making it a recommended dāna for peace and safety.

How does this verse relate to sins and their removal in the Garuda Purana?

It teaches that certain meritorious gifts function as spiritual safeguards: cow-related merit (threefold cows) is said to ‘deliver’ a person from pātaka—sin and its consequences.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Perform charity with clear intention: donate cotton/cloth or support cow-care ethically, using the act as a discipline of compassion and purification rather than mere transaction.