Sanatkumāra said:
1. O Närada, listen. I shall recount the (procedure of) pilgrimage to Gaya which yields salvation. Redemption for those who perform Shraddha has been sung by Brahma earlier.
2-4. If one makes preparations for going to Gayā, 1 one should duly perform Shraddha and circumambulate the village, dressed only in loin cloth like a pilgrim. He should then go to the next village and partake of the remainder of the Shrāddha. Thereafter, he should go on foot every day. He must avoid taking monetary gifts. He who abstains from taking monetary gifts, who is contented, who is invariably pure and who is devoid of arrogance enjoys the fruit of the pilgrimage to the holy centres.
1. Verses 2-5 deal with preliminaries before starting on pilgrimage to Gaya.
5. He whose hands and feet are controlled, the mind is restrained and who possesses learning, penance and fame, attains the fruit of the pilgrimage to the holy centre.
6. At the entrance to Gayā to the east is the great river Phalgu. After digging upwater in the river bed), he should take his bath in the pure water. 1
1. Verses 6-7 deal with the 1st day of the Yātrā. Vå.P. prescribes only bath in Phalgu, Shrāddha and recitation of one’s Veda. TSS. (p.352) prescribes visit to Pretashila and Shräddha on that very day after Shraddha at Phalgu.
7. After performing the Tarpana of Devas and others and after performing the Shraddha in accordance with the injunctions, one should recite the Vedic passage belonging to one’s own branch but need not perform Arghyapradāna (offering of Arghya) and Avāhana (invocation).
8. On the next day he should with all (bodily and mental) purity go to Pretaparvata. 2 The intelligent pilgrim should there after take bath in Brahmakunda and perform Tarpaņa of Devas and others.
2. The rites on the 2nd day: Visit to Pretaparvata, bath in Brahmakunda, Shräddha, offering of Pindas first to one’s paternal anscetors (vv. 23 25) and to other relatives-a long list of which is given in vv.33-55. The last shows the breadth of outlook of the ancients.
9. With all purity, he should perform the Shrāddha for those who are Sapiņdas (having the similar Pindas i.e. near kinsmen) on the Pretaparvata. The intelligent pilgrim should face the southern direction and wear the sacred thread as Prachināviti (from the right shoulder across the chest and passed under the left arm.)
10-12. “The fire with Kavyabāla (?), Soma, Yama, Aryamă, the Pitri-god, like Agnishváttas, the Barhişhads and the Somapás may (please) come; you are the deities of the Pitris. O blessed deities, my Pitris are protected by you. Those kindred relations born in the family are to be offered the ball of rice. I have come to Gaya for that purpose. Let them all attain perpetual contentment by means of this Shrāddha.”
13-14. After saying this and performing Achamana, the pilgrim should perform Prānāyāma with effort, in order to obtain Brahmaloka which is devoid of Punarāvrutti (a return to Samsāra’again). After performing the Shraddha duly in this manner, he, should invoke the Pitris and worship them with the mantras. Then he should offer the balls of ricc.
15-16. In the holy centre, on the Pretaśhilă etc. the place must first be washed with Pañchagavya separately while their mantras are being recited. Then the deities must be worshipped with offerings of Charu soaked in ghee. So long as the gingelly seeds are taken by the pilgrim in the holy rites of the Pitris, Asuras run off from the place of holy rites like deer afraid of lion.
17. The Shraddha of the mother 1 should be performed separately during the Ashtakas (i.e. the 8th day of the three months on which the Pitris are to be propitiated), during the Vruddhi (increase) days and on the day of the death at Gayà. On other occasions the Shrāddha should be performed along with that of her husband (i.e. one’s father).
1. The special Śhrāddha for one’s mother is prescribed during the Aşhtakas and in Vruddhi Shrāddha.
18. During Vruddhi Shrāddha, that of the mother should be performed first. But at Gaya that of the father should be perforined first. The Shrāddha is begun with the offerings of Pädya at the outset and the proper laying of the Kusha grass with the tips pointing to the south to the father etc. The remaining part of the Shraddha is to be performed as mentioned in the respective Gruhya Sūtras.
19. In the case of Sapiņdas, the Darbha grass is duly spread and the water with gingelly seeds is offered once and the Shraddha is performed on their southern side.
20. The water libation is offered with the sacred water of the Pitris holding it in the hollow of one’s palms. He should then offer the Akşhayya (inexhaustible) Pinda with a fistful of powdered fried grain. The other kinsmen are then to be invoked in the Kusha grass by means of the waters with gingelly seeds.
21. May all those Devas, sages, Pitris and human beings, mothers and maternal grandfathers and others beginning with Brahma and ending with a blade of grass, be propitiated by this water libation.
22. May this be the water libation along with gingelly seeds to all those crores of past (members of) families, residing in the seven continents beginning with Brahma and ending with the earth.
23-24. A ball of rice has been offered by me to all these: father, grandfather, great-grandfather, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, maternal grandfather, his father and his grandfather. May that Pinda be of everlasting benefit.
25-27. At Gayāśhiras the Pinda offered is of the size of a first or that of the green emblic myrobalan fruit or that of the leaf of the Shami tree. The devotee shall uplift seven Gotras and a hundred families. The Gotras-seven in number—are those of the father, mother, one’s wife (before marriage), one’s sister (after marriage), one’s daughter (after marriage), and those of the father’s sisters and mother’s sisters. The hundred and one families are as follows: father and his twentyfour ancestors, mother and her twenty ancestors, wife and her sixteen ancestors, twelve ancestors of the sister’s husband, eleven ancestors of the son-in-law, seven ancestors of the husband of the sister of one’s father and eight ancestors of the husband of mother’s sister.
28. There is no invocation in a Tirthashrāddha nor is screen erected shutting off the quarters. There is no defect due to the viewing of others. Clever people should not perform the Tirtha Shrāddha out of pity.
29. This following is the procedure in the Tirtha Shrāddhas: providing seat of the Pindas, offering of the Piņdas, Avanejana (ritualistic sprinkling with the Darbha grass), monetary gifts and the Annasamkalpa (ritualistic expression of one’s intention in preparing food).
30. Mantra: “I invoke all those members of our family who are dead and who have no other way of salvation. I shall invoke them on the Darbha grass, with water libations along with gingelly seeds.
31. I invoke all those persons in the family of our kinsmen who are dead and who have no other way of salvation. I shall invoke them on the Darbha grass with water libations along with gingelly seeds”.
32. Thus the pilgrim should meditate on the Darbhas, repeat these mantras with the offering of water libations along with gingelly seeds, invoke and worship the Pitris and offer the Pindas in due order.
33. “I am offering this Piņda in order to uplift those persons of our family who are dead and who have no other means of salvation.
34. I am offering this Pinda in order to emancipate those persons of our maternal grandfather’s family who are dead and who have no other means of salvation.
35. I am offering this Pinda for the uplift of those persons belonging to the family of our kinsmen who are dead and who have no other means of salvation.
36. I am offering this Pinda for the uplift of those persons who (died) before cutting teeth and those who were afflicted even while in the womb.
37. I am offering this Pinda to those persons who were duly cremated and who were not those who were struck dead by lightning or by robbers.
38. I am offering this Pinda to those who died in the forest fire, to those who were killed by lions and tigers and those who were slain by horned and fanged (beasts of prey).
39. I am offering to those who died by getting hanged, who were killed by poison or by weapons and those who have committed suicide.
4 I am offering this Pinda to those who died of hunger, thirst in the forest path, and to those who were killed by goblins, ghosts and other evil spirits.
41. I am offering this Piņda for the upliftment of those persons who have fallen into the hells called Raurava, Andhatämisra and Kalasutra.
42. I am offering this Pinda for the emancipation of those persons who have fallen into the terrible hells of Asipatravana or Kumbhīpāka.
43. I am offering this Pinda for the uplift of those persons who are stationed in the various abodes of torture and those who have gone to the world of ghosts.
44. I am offering this Pinda for the uplift of those persons who are stationed in the various abodes of torture and those who have been taken away by Yama’s attendants.
45. I am offering this Pinda for the uplift of all those persons who are stationed in any of the hells or abodes of torture.
46. I am offering this Pinda to those who are born in the animal wombs or as birds, worms, insects or reptiles or even as trees.
47. I am offering this Pinda to those persons who are transmigrating into the thousands of other lives as a result of their own actions and to whom the human birth has become a rarity.
48. I am offering the Pinda to those Pitris who are stationed in heaven, firmament or on the earth and to those kinsmen etc. who have not been cremated duly after death.
49. May all those Pitris of mine be propitiated through this Pinda for ever, those Pitris who exist in the form of ghosts.
50. This Pinda has been offered by me to those who may or may not have been my kinsmen in this birth but who were my kinsmen in the other births. May it be of everlasting benefit reaching unto them.
51-53. This Pinda has been offered by me to all those who are dead in my father’s family, to those who are dead in my mother’s family, to those kinsmen, elders, fathers-in-law or other relatives who are dead, to such of those in my family as had neither sons nor wives and hence had been deprived of Pinda offerings, to those who had been defaulters in the holy rites, to those who were born blind, to those who had been lame, to those who had hideous forms, to those who had been prematurely born, to all persons of my family known and unknown. To all those the Pinda has been offered by me. May it be of everlasting benefit in reaching unto them.
54-55. I am offering this Pinda with Svadhā to all these: Those who are born in my father’s family ever since the days of god Brahmā; those who are born in my mother’s family; those who had been my servants in both these families; to those attendants and dependents, to the friends, disciples, animals, trees, birds seen or not seen, those who had rendered help unto me; those who had been in contact with me in my previous births”.
56. With these Mantras the pilgrim should offer the Pindas to the women too, beginning with mother. In that case he should make necessary changes in the substantives and adjectives making them conform to the feminine gender.
57. Whether in one’s own Gotra or in the other man’s Gotra, the offering of the Pindas, the performance of Shräddhas and the water libation is futile if done separately.
58. He should put the gingelly seeds in the vessel of Pindas and fill it with holy water. He should perform the Parisechana rite thrice for all the Pindas and conclude the rite by prostrating himself (before them).
59. After ritualistically dismissing the Pitris, he should perform Achamana and express these words to Suras as witnesses. “May these Devas, Brahma, Iśhāna and others be my witnesses. After coming to Gaya the redemption of my Pitris has been effected by me.
60. O Lord Gadadhara, I have come to Gaya for the performance of the rites of the Pitris. 1 O Lord, you alone are the witness thereof. I have become free from the threefold indebtedness”.
1. To request the supreme deity of Gayā to stand witness to one’s visit may appear funny to some, but that denotes the living faith of the Pilgrim in Gadadhara.
61. O Nárada, the offering of Piņdas in all the places should be like this alone. Beginning with the Preta mountain, he should do it in all the holy spots in due order.
62. Thereafter, O celestial sage, he should throw powdered fried grains mixed with gingelly seeds on the Pretaparvata, anticlockwise and facing the south.
63. Mantra: “May all those Pitris of mine be propitiated by means of these powdered fried grains mixed with gingelly seeds, those Pitris who exist in the form of ghosts.
64-65. May all the mobile and immobile beings beginning with Brahma and ending with a blade of grass be propitiated by means of the libation offered by me.” O Nárada, his Pitris shall be released from ghosthood. Thanks to his great ness, this ghosthood will never recur in his family.
66. In Gayashiras the rocky slab Pretaśhilā is well known for its efficacy in bringing salvation. Adigadādhara is stationed in the form of the holy centre, Mantra etc.