Varaha Purana 202.16: Adhyaya 202, Shloka 16
Description of Infernal Punishments and the Ripening of Karmic Consequences
पिशुनं हि महाव्याघ्राः पञ्च घोराः सुदारुणाः ॥ इमं पचत पाकेषु बहुधा मर्मभेदिनम्
piśunaṃ hi mahāvyāghrāḥ pañca ghorāḥ sudāruṇāḥ || imaṃ pacata pākeṣu bahudhā marmabhedinam
Wahrlich, den Verleumder—mögen die fünf „großen Tiger“, schrecklich und überaus grausam, ihn in den Kochhöllen auf vielerlei Weise garen, als Qual, die die Lebenspunkte durchbohrt.
Varāha (default dialogue framework)
Varaha Avatara Context: {"is_varaha_focus":true,"earth_interaction":"Varāha prescribes punishment for slander within the didactic dialogue frame"}
Bhu Devi Dialogue: {"is_dialogue":true,"speaker_role":"instructor","bhu_devi_state":"morally vigilant; concerned about speech-ethics and social cohesion","key_question":"What is the karmic consequence of pīśunatā (slander) that wounds others through speech?"}
Mathura Mandala: {"is_mathura_related":false}
Dharma Shastra: {"has_dharma_rule":true,"topic":"narakas","instruction_summary":"Slanderers are assigned to ‘cooking’ hells where fierce agents inflict repeated torments that pierce vital points—speech-sins yield severe retribution.","karmic_consequence":"Prolonged naraka suffering; social trust destroyed by slander rebounds as intense personal torment."}
Vrata Mahatmya: {"has_vrata":false}
Cosmic Boar Symbolism: {"has_symbolism":false}
Philosophical Teaching: {"has_teaching":true,"teaching_type":"ethics of speech (vāk-dharma)","core_concept":"Words can be violence; pīśunatā fractures community and thus draws heavy karmic reaction.","practical_application":"Practice satya with hita (truth that is beneficial), avoid backbiting, verify before speaking, and cultivate silence when speech would harm."}
Subject Matter: ["Ethics","Karmic Consequences"]
Primary Rasa: bhayanaka
Secondary Rasa: bibhatsa
Type: otherworld
Related Themes: Varāha Purāṇa 202.14–202.17 (sequence of sins and punishments)
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"Infernal ‘cooking hell’ scene: five dreadful ‘great tigers’ (personified tormentors) surround the slanderer, cooking him in varied ways, striking at marmas (vital points).","item_prompts":["five fierce tiger-like tormentors","boiling cauldron or heated pit","hooks/implements aimed at marmas (symbolic)","steam, smoke, red glow","the slanderer with a darkened tongue motif (symbol of speech-sin)"],"kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural: tiger-tormentors rendered as stylized vyāghra-faced beings; rhythmic flames and steam; symbolic tongue motif; strong reds and blacks with clear narrative composition.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore: devotional top register with Varāha’s authoritative presence; lower register naraka vignette with five tiger figures; gold framing to emphasize moral lesson over horror.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore: dramatic but refined; careful anatomy of tiger figures; emphasis on steam and firelight; expressive fear without excessive gore.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari: storybook clarity—five tigers in a circle around a cauldron; flat color fields; strong outlines; moral caption-like symbolism (tongue/whisper motif)."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"warning against harmful speech","suggested_raga":"Kafi","pace":"medium-slow","voice_tone":"stern, clear, slightly heightened intensity on ‘pīśunam’ and ‘ghorāḥ’"}
FAQs
It reflects a Purāṇic ethical register where social harms such as slander are framed within karmic causality and post-mortem retribution imagery, a common didactic strategy in Dharma-oriented literature.
No explicit geographic toponym appears in this verse; the imagery is cosmological/ethical (tormenting ‘pāka’ contexts) rather than site-specific.
To avoid slander/defamation (piśunatā), presented as a serious moral harm with severe consequences.
Ask anything about this verse
Answers come straight from the texts, with the shlokas they draw on. Ask in your own words.
A free sign-in with Google or Apple keeps your chat saved across web and the app.
Read Varaha Purana in the Vedapath app
Scan the QR code to open this directly in the app, with word-by-word meanings, Sanskrit recitation where available, and more.