Shloka 135

Vṛṣotsarga (Bull-Release Gift): Procedure, Merit, and Narratives on Dharma, Karma, and Liberation

Devanagari script

पापिनो यत्र पात्यन्ते याम्यै पापविशुद्धये / यत्र देवः स धर्माधर्मविचेतनः

Transliteration

pāpino yatra pātyante yāmyai pāpaviśuddhaye / yatra devaḥ sa dharmādharmavicetanaḥ

Translation

Dorthin werden die Sünder hinabgestürzt — in Yamas Reich — zur Läuterung ihrer Sünden; dort waltet das göttliche Wesen, das Dharma und Adharma unterscheidet.

Word by Word

• पापिनः: sinners
• पापिनः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पापिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• यत्र: where
• यत्र: Adhikarana (Relative location)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक सम्बन्धाव्यय (relative adverb: where)

• पात्यन्ते: are cast down / are made to fall
• पात्यन्ते: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: पत् (धातु) (णिच् causative: पातयति)
• Form: लट्-लकार (present), प्रथमपुरुष, बहुवचन, आत्मनेपद; कर्मणि/भावे प्रयोगे ‘are made to fall/are cast down’

• याम्यै: for (the realm/agency) of Yama
• याम्यै: Sampradana (Recipient/सम्प्रदान)
• Type: Noun
• Root: याम्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; सम्प्रदान (for Yāmī/pertaining to Yama)

• पापविशुद्धये: for purification of sin
• पापविशुद्धये: Prayojana (Purpose/प्रयोजन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पाप (प्रातिपदिक) + विशुद्धि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, चतुर्थी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; ‘पापस्य विशुद्धिः’ (purification from sin)

• यत्र: where
• यत्र: Adhikarana (Relative location)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: देशवाचक सम्बन्धाव्यय (relative adverb)

• देवः: the god / lord
• देवः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• स: he
• स: Karta (Apposition/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन (सर्वनाम)

• धर्माधर्मविचेतनः: the discerner/judge of dharma and adharma
• धर्माधर्मविचेतनः: Predicate Nominative (समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धर्म (प्रातिपदिक) + अधर्म (प्रातिपदिक) + विचेतन (वि-चित् धातु, ल्युट्/ण्वुल्-प्रातिपदिक ‘विचेतन’ = examiner/knower)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; ‘धर्मस्य अधर्मस्य च विचेतनः’ (judge/discerner)

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (narrating to Garuda/Vinata-putra)

Pretakalpa Layer

Afterlife Stage: Naraka

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Naraka-like suffering is a karmic purification; Yama administers consequences by discerning dharma and adharma.

Vedantic Theme: Ṛta/dharma as cosmic law; karma-phala as educative and purificatory mechanism within saṃsāra.

Application: Choose actions with awareness of consequences; practice confession/prāyaścitta and ethical restraint to avoid pāpa.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: bhayanaka

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Geographic Context

Type: realm/court of judgment; punitive precinct

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana Pretakalpa: catalogues of narakas and pāpa-specific punishments; Yama’s court and Citragupta’s accounting (thematic linkage)

Characters & Entities

• Yama
• Deva

FAQs

What is the importance of Yama’s realm in the Garuda Purana?

This verse presents Yama’s domain as a place where sinners face consequences aimed at purification, under a divine judge who distinguishes dharma from adharma.

How does this verse explain the path of the soul after death?

It implies that souls burdened by sin are taken to Yama’s jurisdiction, where their deeds are evaluated through the lens of dharma and adharma, leading to corrective suffering.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Live with dharmic discernment—reduce harmful actions and cultivate ethical conduct—so that one’s karmic account does not require harsh purification after death.