Garudapurana 1.89

The glorious Garuḍa Mahāpurāṇa—89
Sūta said:
Being questioned, Mārkaṇḍeya spoke again to Krauñcuki:
With his mind greatly agitated by those words of his ancestors,

the brahmin sage, desiring a maiden, wandered over the earth.
Not finding a maiden, spurred on by the words of his ancestors,
he experienced deep anxiety, his mind exceedingly distressed.

“What shall I do? Where shall I go? How can marriage
quickly happen for me, bringing about prosperity for my ancestors and for me?”

As he was pondering thus, the thought occurred to the great-souled one:
“Through austerity, I shall propitiate Brahmā, the lotus-born.”

Then the magnanimous one performed austerity for a hundred celestial years;
remaining there for a long time in the forests, steadfast in vows,
he then undertook supreme restraint to propitiate [him].

Then Brahmā, the grandfather of the worlds, revealed himself,
and spoke: “I am pleased; let your desire be stated!”

Then, having bowed, he spoke to Brahmā, the refuge of the universe,
about what he wished to do in accordance with the command of his ancestors.

Brahmā said:
You shall become a Prajāpati; offspring must be created by you.
Having created offspring, producing sons, O brahmin, and likewise rituals,

having carried out your role, you will then attain perfection.
Therefore, take a wife as instructed by your ancestors.

With this desire in mind, let worship of the ancestors be performed. / Satisfied, those very ancestors will grant what you desire. / When pleased, what would the ancestors not give—a wife and sons?

Mārkaṇḍeya said: / Hearing this speech of Brahmā, whose birth is unmanifest, / the sage performed libations to the ancestors on the secluded bank of a river.

Then, focused and restrained, his neck bowed in devotion, / the attentive brāhmaṇa praised the ancestors with these hymns:

Ruci said: / I bow with devotion to the ancestors who dwell as presiding deities, / who are gratified even by the gods at śrāddhas ending with svadhā.

I bow to the ancestors in heaven, who are gratified by the great sages / through mental śrāddhas, with devotion, by those desiring enjoyment and liberation.

I bow to the ancestors in heaven, whom the siddhas gratify / at śrāddhas with all kinds of celestial, unsurpassed offerings.

I bow with devotion to the ancestors who are worshipped in heaven by the guhyakas / desiring supreme, absolute prosperity through absorption in them.

I bow to the ancestors who are always worshipped on earth by mortals / with faith at śrāddhas, bestowing their desired realms and nourishment.

I bow to the ancestors who are always worshipped on earth by brāhmaṇas / for obtaining what is desired and longed for, granting the status of Prajāpati.

I bow to the ancestors who are indeed gratified by forest dwellers / whose food is restrained, whose impurities are removed by asceticism, through forest śrāddha offerings.

I bow to the ancestors who are perpetually gratified / through meditations by self-controlled, lifelong celibate brāhmaṇas practicing dharma.

I bow to the ancestors whom kṣatriyas gratify at śrāddhas / according to rule with all ancestral offerings, who bestow the fruits of both worlds.

I bow to the ancestors who are always worshipped on earth by vaiśyas / devoted to their own duties, continually with flowers, incense, food, and water.

I bow to the ancestors who at the śrāddha are gratified with devotion even by śūdras; / famous by the name Sukālins, they encompass the entire universe.

I bow to the ancestors who at the śrāddha in the netherworld are gratified / constantly by the great asuras, who eat nectar and have cast off pride and arrogance.

I bow to the ancestors who at śrāddhas are worshipped in Rasātala / according to rule with all enjoyments by nāgas desiring their wished-for pleasures.

I bow to the ancestors who are constantly gratified at śrāddhas right there / by serpents, according to rule, endowed with abundant mantras and offerings.

I bow to the ancestors who dwell visibly in the world of the gods, on the earth's surface, / or likewise in the atmosphere, worshipped even by the enemies of the gods; may they accept what I present.

I bow to the ancestors who are the ultimate reality, who dwell formless in celestial chariots, / whom masters of yoga worship with minds free of impurity, as the causes of liberation from afflictions.

I bow to the ancestors possessing form in heaven, who consume the svadhā, capable of granting / all desired things when motivated by a wish for fruits, and who bestow liberation to those without desire.

May all those ancestors be gratified herein, who grant desires to those who wish for them: / godhood, Indra's status, or even higher, elephants, horses, gems, and great mansions.

Those who dwell in the rays of the moon, in the orb of the sun, and always in bright celestial chariots— / may those ancestors be gratified herein with food and water, and attain nourishment from perfume and the like.

Those who are gratified by oblations when offerings are made in fire, who eat while abiding in the bodies of brāhmaṇas, / and who attain joy through the offering of rice-balls—may those ancestors be gratified herein with food and water.

Those who are gladdened by rhinoceros meat, by black sesame seeds pleasing to the gods and celestially charming, / and with kālaśāka by the best of great sages—may they attain joy here.

And whatever offerings to the ancestors are especially beloved to those worshipped by me, / may they be present here among the flowers, scents, water, and food prepared by me.

Those who accept worship day by day, who are worshipped at the end of the month, on earth on the aṣṭakā days, / and who are worshipped at the end of the year and at auspicious ceremonies—may those ancestors of mine find satisfaction here.

Those worshipped by the twice-born, shining like the white water-lily and moon; those of kṣatriyas, colored like fire and the sun; / likewise those of vaiśyas, radiant like gold; and those of the śūdras, with the lustre of indigo—

may all of them be satisfied herein by my presentation of flowers, perfume, incense, water, food, and the like, / and likewise through fire-oblations; I bow down always to those ancestors.

Those who eat pure ancestral offerings preceded by offerings to the gods for complete satisfaction, / and who, when satisfied, bestow prosperity—may they be gratified herein; I bow down to them.

May they destroy rākṣasas, spirits, and fierce asuras, and remove misfortune from creatures; / the primordial ones among the gods, worshipped by the lord of the immortals—may they be gratified herein; I bow down to them.

May the Agniṣvāttas, the Barhiṣads, the Ājyapas, and likewise the Somapas, / reach satisfaction in this śrāddha, the ancestors gratified by me.

May the Agniṣvātta groups of ancestors protect my eastern quarter; / likewise, may the Barhiṣad ancestors always guard my southern quarter; / similarly the Ājyapas the west, and the Somapas the north.

From rākṣasas, bhūtas, and piśācas, and likewise from the harm of asuras, / may the ancestors constantly provide protection on all sides for me.

Viśva, Viśvabhuj, Ārādhya, Dharma, Dhanya, Śubhānana, / Bhūtida, Bhūtikṛt, and Bhūti: these are the nine groups of ancestors.

Kalyāṇa, Kalyada, Kartṛ, Kalya, Kalyatarāśraya, / and Kalyatāhetu-anagha: these are remembered as six groups.

Vara, Vareṇya, Varada, Tuṣṭida, and likewise Puṣṭida, / Viśvapātṛ, and Dhātṛ: these are remembered as seven groups.

Mahat, Mahātman, Mahita, Mahimāvat, and Mahābala: / these are the five groups of ancestors that destroy sins.

Sukhada, Dhanada, another being Dharmada, and another Bhūtida: / thus is recounted a set of four groups of ancestors.

The thirty-one groups of ancestors by whom the entire universe is pervaded— / may those very groups of ancestors be satisfied here by what is offered by me.

Mārkaṇḍeya said: / While he was thus praising them, an exalted mass of splendor / suddenly appeared, pervading the sky.

Having seen that exceedingly great splendour standing encompassing the world, / Ruci, falling to the earth on his knees, sang this hymn of praise:

Ruci said: / ‘To the fathers, worshipped, bodiless, of radiant splendour, / meditators with divine eyes, to them I always bow.

And who are the leaders of Indra and the others, and of Dakṣa and Marīci's son [Kaśyapa], / as well as of the seven sages and others, to those granters of desires I bow.

And who are the leaders of Manu and the rest, and of the sun and the moon, / to all those fathers, even those in the ocean, I bow.

And of the constellations, planets, wind, fire, and sky, / as well as of heaven and earth, with joined palms I bow.

To Prajāpati Kaśyapa, to Soma, and to Varuṇa, / and to the lords of yoga, with joined palms I always bow.

Homage to the seven groups [of fathers] in the seven worlds; / I bow to the self-born Brahman whose eye is yoga.

To the groups of fathers whose support is Soma, who bear the form of yoga, / I bow, and likewise to Soma, the father of the worlds.

And to the other fathers who have the nature of fire, I bow, / since this entire universe consists of fire and Soma.

Those who are in splendour, and those who have the forms of Soma, the sun, and fire, / whose nature is the universe, and likewise whose nature is Brahman,

to all those yogic fathers, with restrained mind: / Homage, homage, homage be to you! May the consumers of the svadhā offering be pleased!’

Mārkaṇḍeya said: / Praised thus by him, O best of sages, / those fathers emerged from that splendour, illuminating the ten directions.

And with the offering of flowers and fragrant unguents that had been made by him, / adorned with that, he then saw them standing before him.

Prostrating himself with devotion, once again with joined palms, / Ruci respectfully said to them individually: ‘Homage to you, homage to you!’

Then the pleased fathers said to that best of sages: / ‘Choose a boon!’ Bowing his head, he said to them:

Ruci said: / ‘The role of creator of offspring was commanded to me by Brahmā; / therefore, I desire a blessed, divine wife who will bear offspring.’

The fathers said: / ‘Right here, immediately, let there be an exceedingly delightful wife for you, / and in her, a son shall be born to you, O best of sages!

A wise ruler of a Manvantara, designated by your very name, / O Ruci, he will attain renown in the three worlds as Raucya.

And he shall have many great-souled sons of great strength and valour, / protectors of the earth.

And you, having become a prajāpati and created the fourfold offspring, / your duty fulfilled, knowing dharma, will then attain perfection.

And whichever man pleases us with this hymn out of devotion, / pleased with him, we [grant] enjoyments, a son, and supreme meditation.

Longevity, health, wealth, as well as sons, grandsons, and the like, / by those desiring these, we should indeed be praised constantly with this hymn, because:

Whoever will recite this praise that pleases us with devotion at ancestral rites, / standing before the foremost twice-born while they eat,

delighted by hearing the hymn, our supreme presence being made, / that ancestral rite shall without doubt become imperishable through us.

Even if an ancestral rite lacks learned priests, even if it is impaired, / or if it is performed with wealth obtained unjustly, or otherwise [flawed],

or performed with spoiled offerings unworthy of an ancestral rite, / or at an improper time or place, or even devoid of proper rules,

or what is performed without faith by men resorting to hypocrisy, / even so, for our satisfaction, by the recitation of this ancestral rite [hymn],

in whichever ancestral rite this hymn bringing us pleasure is recited, / our satisfaction produced there lasts for twelve years.

In the cold season, it grants twelve years of satisfaction; / in the winter, this auspicious hymn [grants] satisfaction for double that number of years.

In the spring, it brings sixteen years of satisfaction in the ancestral rite; / and in the summer, recited, it causes sixteen [years of] satisfaction.

Even when an ancestral rite is performed defectively, if accomplished with this hymn / in the rainy season, our satisfaction becomes imperishable, O Ruci!

Even when recited in the autumn at the time of the ancestral rite, / by men, it grants us satisfaction for fifteen years.

And in whatever house this [hymn] remains written constantly, / our presence will be there when an ancestral rite is performed.

Therefore, this must be recited by you at an ancestral rite before the Brahmins while they eat, / O highly fortunate one; it causes our nourishment.’

Thus ends the eighty-ninth chapter, titled ‘The Praise of the Fathers Composed by Ruci,’ in the section on conduct, in the first part called the first section of the glorious Garuḍa Purāṇa.