Shloka 8

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

Devanagari script

अमावास्या यदा पुष्ये रौद्रे चर्क्षे पुनर्वसौ द्वादशाब्दं तदा तृप्तिं प्रयान्ति पितरो ऽर्चिताः

Transliteration

amāvāsyā yadā puṣye raudre carkṣe punarvasau dvādaśābdaṃ tadā tṛptiṃ prayānti pitaro 'rcitāḥ

Translation

当新月日与普施耶（Puṣya）、凶烈星宿阿尔德拉（Ārdrā）或普那婆苏（Punarvasu）相合时，若如法供奉祖灵（Pitṛ），则祖灵得十二年之满足安慰。

Word by Word

• अमावास्या: new-moon day
• अमावास्या: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अमावास्या (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• यदा: when
• यदा: Sambandha (Temporal relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यदा (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (temporal adverb: 'when')

• पुष्ये: in (the nakṣatra) Puṣya
• पुष्ये: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुष्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/7th), एकवचन (Singular)

• रौद्रे: in (the nakṣatra) Raudra
• रौद्रे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रौद्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/7th), एकवचन (Singular)

• च: and
• च: Samuccaya (Coordination/समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-बोधक-अव्यय (conjunction: 'and')

• अर्क्षे: in the asterism (nakṣatra)
• अर्क्षे: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अर्क्ष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/7th), एकवचन (Singular)

• पुनर्वसौ: in (the nakṣatra) Punarvasu
• पुनर्वसौ: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुनर्वसु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/7th), एकवचन (Singular)

• द्वादशाब्दम्: a period of twelve years
• द्वादशाब्दम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्वादश (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक) + अब्द (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (Singular); द्विगु-समास (numeral compound)

• तदा: then
• तदा: Sambandha (Temporal relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तदा (अव्यय)
• Form: कालवाचक-अव्यय (temporal adverb: 'then')

• तृप्तिम्: satisfaction
• तृप्तिम्: Gati-Karma (Goal as object/गतिकर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तृप्ति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), द्वितीया-विभक्ति (Accusative/2nd), एकवचन (Singular)

• प्रयान्ति: attain, reach
• प्रयान्ति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र + या (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथम-पुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन (Plural)

• पितरः: the ancestors (pitṛs)
• पितरः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), बहुवचन (Plural)

• अर्चिताः: worshipped, honored
• अर्चिताः: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अर्च् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त-प्रत्यय)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि-कर्तरि कृदन्त (past passive participle), पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा-विभक्ति (Nominative/1st), बहुवचन (Plural)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Śrāddha performed on specific amāvāsyā-nakṣatra conjunctions yields prolonged pitṛ-tṛpti, showing the potency of time (kāla) in Vedic rites.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Observe ancestral remembrance with sincerity on traditional śrāddha days, pairing charity/food-offering with ethical living.

Vishishtadvaita: Kāla as Bhagavān’s ordinance: ritual efficacy operates within the divinely governed order, aligning personal duty with cosmic regulation.

Vaishnava Theology

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Characters & Entities

• Pitṛs (ancestors)
• Amāvāsyā
• Puṣya
• Ārdrā (Raudra)
• Punarvasu
• Nakṣatras

FAQs

What is the significance of Amāvāsyā Shraddha when it falls in Puṣya, Ārdrā (Raudra), or Punarvasu in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse states that Shraddha performed on Amāvāsyā when joined with these nakṣatras grants the Pitṛs an extended satisfaction lasting twelve years, highlighting these as exceptionally potent ritual conjunctions.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the role of nakṣatras in determining Shraddha results?

Parāśara links specific lunar asterisms with amplified spiritual outcomes, teaching that dharmic acts align with cosmic rhythms; when timing is harmonized, the offering becomes more efficacious for the Pitṛs.

What is the theological importance of Lord Vishnu in this context of Shraddha and Pitṛ satisfaction?

Even in ritual instruction, the Vishnu Purana frames dharma as operating within Vishnu’s ordered cosmos—so the fruits of Shraddha arise through the divine governance of time (kāla), lunar cycles, and sacred law.