Shloka 17

Śrāddha’s Cosmic Reach and Kāla-Nirṇaya (Sacred Timings): Amāvāsyā, Nakṣatra-Yoga, Tīrtha, and Minimum Offerings

Devanagari script

तत्रैव चेद् भाद्रपदास् तु पूर्वाः काले तदा यत् क्रियते पितृभ्यः श्राद्धं परां तृप्तिम् उपेत्य तेन युगं समग्रं पितरः स्वपन्ति

Transliteration

tatraiva ced bhādrapadās tu pūrvāḥ kāle tadā yat kriyate pitṛbhyaḥ śrāddhaṃ parāṃ tṛptim upetya tena yugaṃ samagraṃ pitaraḥ svapanti

Translation

اور اگر اسی وقت بھاد्रپد کے ابتدائی دن آ جائیں تو پِتروں کے لیے طریقے کے مطابق کیا گیا شرادھ انہیں اعلیٰ ترین تسکین دیتا ہے۔ اس تسکین سے پِتر پورے ایک یُگ تک امن و سکون سے آرام کرتے ہیں۔

Word by Word

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक-अव्यय

• एव: indeed/just
• एव: Sambandha/Modifier (निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव (अव्यय)
• Form: अवधारण-निपात (emphatic particle)

• चेत्: if
• चेत्: Sambandha/Modifier (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: चेत् (अव्यय)
• Form: शर्तबोधक-अव्यय (conditional particle)

• भाद्रपदाः: (the nakṣatras) Bhādrapadās
• भाद्रपदाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भाद्रपदा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; नक्षत्रवाचक (पूर्वभाद्रपदा/उत्तरभाद्रपदा)

• तु: but/then
• तु: Sambandha/Modifier (निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: विरोध/अन्वय-निपात (but/and then)

• पूर्वाः: the former/earlier (i.e., Pūrvā)
• पूर्वाः: Karta-viśeṣaṇa (Subject-qualifier/कर्तृविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पूर्व (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; ‘भाद्रपदाः’ इति विशेषणम्

• काले: at the time
• काले: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: काल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• तदा: then
• तदा: Adhikarana (Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तदा (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय

• यत्: that which
• यत्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; सम्बन्धबोधक (relative pronoun)

• क्रियते: is done/performed
• क्रियते: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √कृ (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार, आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; कर्मणि-प्रयोग (passive sense)

• पितृभ्यः: for/to the ancestors
• पितृभ्यः: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• श्राद्धम्: śrāddha rite
• श्राद्धम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: श्राद्ध (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• पराम्: supreme/great
• पराम्: Karma-viśeṣaṇa (Object-qualifier/कर्मविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: परा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; ‘तृप्तिम्’ इति विशेषणम्

• तृप्तिम्: satisfaction
• तृप्तिम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तृप्ति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• उपेत्य: having attained
• उपेत्य: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: उप-√इ (धातु) + त्वा (क्त्वा-प्रत्यय) → उपेत्य (अव्ययीभाव-क्रियाविशेषण)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (gerund/absolutive), पूर्वकालिक-क्रिया (having attained)

• तेन: by that/thereby
• तेन: Hetu (Cause/हेतु)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसक, तृतीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• युगम्: an age (yuga)
• युगम्: Karma (Extent/object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: युग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; कालपरिमाणवाचक

• समग्रम्: entire/complete
• समग्रम्: Karma-viśeṣaṇa (Object-qualifier/कर्मविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: समग्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; ‘युगम्’ इति विशेषणम्

• पितरः: the ancestors
• पितरः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• स्वपन्ति: sleep/rest
• स्वपन्ति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √स्वप् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार, परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (in discourse to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Exceptional śrāddha results tied to specific calendrical windows (early Bhādrapada)

Teaching: Ethical

Quality: revealing

Cosmological Context

Creation Stage: Manvantara

Yuga: Satya

Manvantara: Vaivasvata

Cosmic Hierarchy: Lokas

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: A properly performed śrāddha at a highly auspicious time can grant the Pitṛs profound repose and satisfaction extending for an entire yuga.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Treat remembrance of ancestors as a sacred duty: perform rites or charitable acts mindfully on traditional dates, cultivating continuity, gratitude, and responsibility.

Vishishtadvaita: Interconnectedness of souls across generations reflects a real, divinely sustained relational order (śeṣa-śeṣi-bhāva) rather than isolated individualism.

Vaishnava Theology

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Characters & Entities

• Pitṛs (ancestors)
• Bhādrapada
• Śrāddha

FAQs

What is the significance of performing śrāddha in the early days of Bhādrapada in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse states that śrāddha performed at that specific, auspicious time grants the Pitṛs supreme satisfaction, resulting in their peaceful repose for a complete yuga.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the effect of śrāddha on the Pitṛs?

Parāśara frames śrāddha as a dharmic act whose properly timed performance directly nourishes and pleases the Pitṛs, producing an enduring, age-long benefit rather than a momentary result.

What is the theological importance of Lord Vishnu in this context?

Though Vishnu is not named in the verse, the teaching reflects Vaishnava dharma: ritual order and time are meaningful within Vishnu’s sovereign cosmic governance, where righteous acts sustain harmony between worlds, including the ancestral realm.