Padma Purana — Bhumi Khanda, Shloka 24
Sudevā’s Ascent to Heaven
Merit, Hospitality, and Release from Hell
अन्येष्वेव नरकेषु पातिता नृपनंदिनि । योनिगर्तेषु क्षिप्तास्मि पतिता दुःखसंकटे
anyeṣveva narakeṣu pātitā nṛpanaṃdini | yonigarteṣu kṣiptāsmi patitā duḥkhasaṃkaṭe
يا ابنة الملك، لقد طُرِحتُ أيضًا في جحيمٍ آخر؛ وقُذِفتُ في حُفَرِ الأرحام (مواطن الولادة من جديد)، فسقطتُ في هوّةٍ أليمةٍ من الشقاء.
Unspecified female speaker addressing a princess (nṛpanandini) within the Bhūmi-khaṇḍa narrative context
Concept: Pāpa leads to repeated descent—hells and painful rebirth—until expiation and devotion redirect the soul.
Application: Use fear of saṃsāric suffering as a spur to daily restraint (ahiṃsā, satya), regular japa, and observance of purifying vratas (especially Ekādaśī) as preventive medicine for karma.
Primary Rasa: karuna
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A sorrowful female spirit speaks to a royal princess, her form half-shadowed as if emerging from a chasm. Behind her, layered hell-realms fade into a vortex of womb-like caverns, symbolizing repeated rebirth and the crushing continuity of suffering.","primary_figures":["lamenting female soul","princess (nṛpanandinī)","shadowy attendants of Yama (dūtas)"],"setting":"Threshold between an earthly palace chamber (or dream-vision) and a cavernous naraka vista with womb-pits opening like dark lotuses turned inward.","lighting_mood":"moonlit with ominous underglow","color_palette":["ash gray","indigo black","blood maroon","pale ivory","smoky violet"],"tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting style: a palace interior where a princess listens in shock as a translucent suffering woman appears; behind them a stylized naraka archway with concentric womb-pits; heavy gold leaf on the princess’s jewelry and pillars, rich crimson and emerald textiles, ornate halos, traditional South Indian iconographic symmetry.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari miniature style: delicate, lyrical scene of a princess seated on a terrace at night while a pale spirit narrates her fall; distant hills dissolve into a surreal cavern of rebirth-pits; cool blues and violets, fine facial features, thin white outlines, minimal but expressive horror elements.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural style: bold black outlines and flat natural pigments; the spirit with elongated eyes and sorrowful expression, the princess in regal stance; a stylized naraka portal with rhythmic patterns suggesting womb-cycles; dominant reds, yellows, greens with dark indigo background.","pichwai_prompt":"Pichwai cloth painting style: symbolic composition where dark lotus-buds represent womb-pits encircling a central empty space; the princess at one side with attendants; intricate floral borders, deep blues and gold accents, narrative cartouches hinting at saṃsāra and deliverance."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"dramatic","suggested_raga":"Bhairavi","pace":"slow-meditative","voice_tone":"emotional","sound_elements":["low temple bell","distant conch","wind in empty corridors","heavy silence"]}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: अन्येष्वेव = अन्येषु + एव; क्षिप्तास्मि = क्षिप्ता + अस्मि.
FAQs
It uses vivid imagery—“pits/chasms of wombs”—to suggest being forced again and again into painful rebirths, emphasizing karmic compulsion rather than free choice.
Both: it first mentions being cast into various hells (narakeṣu), then extends the suffering into repeated embodiment through “yonigarteṣu,” linking after-death punishment with continued saṃsāric misery.
Actions have enduring consequences: wrongdoing can lead to intense suffering after death and continued hardship through unfavorable rebirths, urging moral restraint and corrective living.