Vamana Purana — Karmic Causes of Narakas, Shloka 37
Karmic Causes of Narakas and the Irremediability of Ingratitude (Kṛtaghna-doṣa)
पृष्ठमांसाशिनो मूढास्तथैवोत्कोचजीविनः क्षिप्यन्ते वृकभक्षे ते नरके रजनीचर
pṛṣṭhamāṃsāśino mūḍhāstathaivotkocajīvinaḥ kṣipyante vṛkabhakṣe te narake rajanīcara
হে রজনীচর! যারা মোহগ্রস্ত হয়ে পিঠের মাংস ভক্ষণ করে, এবং যারা উৎকোচে জীবিকা নির্বাহ করে—তারা ‘বৃকভক্ষ’ নামক নরকে নিক্ষিপ্ত হয়।
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FAQs
The verse condemns two forms of adharma: (1) cruel, dehumanizing violence symbolized by eating flesh in an especially brutal manner, and (2) institutional corruption—living off bribes. Both are treated as grave moral failures that lead to severe post-mortem consequences, reinforcing that livelihood (ājīvikā) must be dhārmic.
This passage aligns most closely with Dharma/Karma-phala instruction rather than the five classic purāṇic marks; it is not sarga/pratisarga/vaṃśa/vaṃśānucarita/manvantara narration. If forced into a purāṇic taxonomy, it functions as didactic material attached to broader narrative frames (often embedded within manvantara/vaṃśānucarita contexts, but here primarily ethical-penal teaching).
‘Vṛkabhakṣa’ (wolf-devouring/devoured-by-wolves) symbolizes retributive reversal: those who prey upon others (through violence or corrupt extraction) become prey. The imagery encodes a moral inversion—harm returned in kind.