Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 127

Pāpa-bheda, Naraka-yātanā, Mahāpātaka-vicāra, Atonement Limits, Daśa-vidhā Bhakti, and Gaṅgā as Final Remedy

Devanagari script

यातनास्वासु सर्वासु पच्यन्ते वै पृथक् पृथक् । ततश्च विष्टाकृमयः कल्पानामेकविंशतिम् ॥ १२७ ॥

Transliteration

yātanāsvāsu sarvāsu pacyante vai pṛthak pṛthak | tataśca viṣṭākṛmayaḥ kalpānāmekaviṃśatim || 127 ||

Translation

In all diesen qualvollen Zuständen werden sie wahrlich gekocht – jeder einzeln. Danach werden sie für einundzwanzig Kalpas zu Würmern im Kot.

Word by Word

• yātanāsu: in the tortures/punishments
• yātanāsu: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yātanā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Locative (7th/सप्तमी), Plural

• āsu: in these
• āsu: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Demonstrative pronoun used adjectivally; Feminine, Locative, Plural; ‘in these’

• sarvāsu: in all
• sarvāsu: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Locative, Plural; qualifying yātanāsu

• pacyante: are cooked/tormented
• pacyante: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √pac (धातु)
• Form: Present (लट्), Ātmanepada, 3rd person, Plural; passive-like sense ‘are cooked/tormented’

• vai: indeed
• vai: Avadhāraṇa (अवधारण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vai (अव्यय)
• Form: Particle (निपात), emphasis/indeed

• pṛthak: separately
• pṛthak: Kriyā-viśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: pṛthak (अव्यय)
• Form: Indeclinable adverb (अव्यय), ‘separately’

• pṛthak: each separately
• pṛthak: Kriyā-viśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: pṛthak (अव्यय)
• Form: Indeclinable adverb repeated for distributive emphasis

• tataḥ: thereafter
• tataḥ: Kāla-avyaya (कालवाचक-अव्यय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tataḥ (अव्यय/तद्-प्रभव)
• Form: Indeclinable adverb (अव्यय), ‘thereafter’

• ca: and
• ca: Samuccaya (समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Conjunction (समुच्चयबोधक)

• viṣṭā-kṛmayaḥ: worms of excrement
• viṣṭā-kṛmayaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viṣṭā (प्रातिपदिक) + kṛmi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa (षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष) ‘viṣṭāyāḥ kṛmayaḥ’; Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• kalpānām: of kalpas
• kalpānām: Ṣaṣṭhī-sambandha (षष्ठीसम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kalpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Plural

• eka-viṃśatim: twenty-one
• eka-viṃśatim: Kāla-parimāṇa (कालपरिमाण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: eka (प्रातिपदिक) + viṃśati (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Dvigu (द्विगु) numeral compound ‘twenty-one’; Feminine, Accusative, Singular; measure of duration (understood: kalpānām)

Speaker

Sanatkumara (teaching Narada)

Vrata Kalpa

Vrata: none

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: bibhatsa

Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka

FAQs

What is the spiritual significance of this verse in Narada Purana?

It emphasizes karmic inevitability: each being experiences tailored consequences (pṛthak pṛthak) for wrongdoing, underscoring the urgency of dharma, restraint, and purification.

How does this verse explain the path of devotion (Bhakti)?

By illustrating the terror of consequences for pāpa, it indirectly drives the seeker toward refuge in Vishnu-bhakti and dharmic living as protective, purifying disciplines that prevent downfall.

What practical Vedic knowledge (Vedanga) is highlighted here?

No specific Vedanga is taught in this verse; the practical takeaway is ethical discipline and prāyaścitta-oriented conduct consistent with Dharmaśāstra traditions referenced across Purāṇic teaching.