Shloka 20
Naraka-varṇana: The Hellish Planets and the Karmic Logic of Punishment
यस्त्विह वा अगम्यां स्त्रियमगम्यं वा पुरुषं योषिदभिगच्छति तावमुत्र कशया ताडयन्तस्तिग्मया सूर्म्या लोहमय्या पुरुषमालिङ्गयन्ति स्त्रियं च पुरुषरूपया सूर्म्या ॥ २० ॥
yas tv iha vā agamyāṁ striyam agamyaṁ vā puruṣaṁ yoṣid abhigacchati tāv amutra kaśayā tāḍayantas tigmayā sūrmyā lohamayyā puruṣam āliṅgayanti striyaṁ ca puruṣa-rūpayā sūrmyā.
A man or woman who indulges in illicit sex is punished in Taptasūrmi hell. The man is forced to embrace a red-hot iron woman, and the woman a red-hot iron man.
Generally a man should not have sexual relations with any woman other than his wife. According to Vedic principles, the wife of another man is considered one’s mother, and sexual relations are strictly forbidden with one’s mother, sister and daughter. If one indulges in illicit sexual relations with another man’s wife, that activity is considered identical with having sex with one’s mother. This act is most sinful. The same principle holds for a woman also; if she enjoys sex with a man other than her husband, the act is tantamount to having sexual relations with her father or son. Illicit sex life is always forbidden, and any man or woman who indulges in it is punished in the manner described in this verse.
FAQs
In Canto 5, Chapter 26, Śukadeva describes that those who engage in forbidden sexual relations face severe karmic punishment after death—being whipped and forced to embrace burning iron forms—illustrating the grave consequences of violating dharma.
Śukadeva Gosvāmī explains naraka to Mahārāja Parīkṣit to teach how karma operates, to warn against adharma, and to inspire sincere repentance and devotion that frees one from sinful reactions.
Live with sexual responsibility and dharmic boundaries—avoid exploitation, betrayal, and forbidden relationships—and cultivate purity through self-control, honest conduct, and bhakti, which purifies the heart and redirects desire toward the Lord.