Shloka 50

Saṅkara-jāti-nirṇaya and Gṛhastha-ācāra: Daily Rites, Purity, Anadhyāya, and Food Discipline

Devanagari script

पशुमण्डूकनकुलश्वाहिमार्जारसूकरैः / कृते ऽन्तरे त्वहोरात्रं शक्रपाते तथोच्छ्रये

Transliteration

paśumaṇḍūkanakulaśvāhimārjārasūkaraiḥ / kṛte 'ntare tvahorātraṃ śakrapāte tathocchraye

Translation

When the sinner is set upon by beasts—frogs, mongooses, dogs, serpents, cats, and boars—each interval of torment endures a full day and night; so too beneath Indra’s downpour of rain, and in the ordeal of being lifted aloft and cast down.

Word by Word

• पशु-मण्डूक-नकुल-श्व-अहि-मार्जार-सूकरैः: by/with (the presence of) animals—frog, mongoose, dog, snake, cat, pig
• पशु-मण्डूक-नकुल-श्व-अहि-मार्जार-सूकरैः: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पशु (प्रातिपदिक) + मण्डूक (प्रातिपदिक) + नकुल (प्रातिपदिक) + श्वन् (प्रातिपदिक) + अहि (प्रातिपदिक) + मार्जार (प्रातिपदिक) + सूकर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), बहुवचन; इतरेतर-द्वन्द्वसमासः (enumerative copulative)

• कृते: when (it is) done/occurring; at the time of
• कृते: Adhikarana (Location/Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: कृ (धातु) → कृत (कृदन्त/कृत्-प्रत्यय)
• Form: कृदन्त-रूपम्; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त ‘कृत’ इत्यस्य सप्तमी/लोके (locative absolute sense) प्रयोगः; अव्ययीभावेन ‘कृते’ = ‘कृतकाले/समये’ (when done/when occurring)

• अन्तरे: in between; during an interval
• अन्तरे: Adhikarana (Location/Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अन्तर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/अधिकरण), एकवचन; ‘अन्तरे’ = मध्ये/अवसरे (in between/at an interval)

• तु: but; indeed
• तु: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात (particle)

• अहोरात्रम्: a day and night; a full day
• अहोरात्रम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अहोरात्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), एकवचन; अहः+रात्रि इति समाहार-द्वन्द्वः (day-and-night as a unit)

• शक्रपाते: at a thunderbolt strike; during lightning/thunderbolt fall
• शक्रपाते: Adhikarana (Location/Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शक्रपात (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/अधिकरण), एकवचन; षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः (शक्रस्य पातः) = इन्द्रपातः/वज्रपातः (thunderbolt-fall)

• तथा: likewise; also
• तथा: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रियाविशेषण (adverb)

• उच्छ्रये: on a height; at an elevated place
• उच्छ्रये: Adhikarana (Location/Time/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: उच्छ्रय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/अधिकरण), एकवचन; ‘उच्छ्रय’ = उच्चस्थान/उन्नतदेश (on a height/elevation)

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (in instruction to Garuda/Vinatā-putra)

Pretakalpa Layer

Afterlife Stage: Naraka

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Papa produces proportionate, time-measured suffering; torment is structured and repetitive, not random.

Vedantic Theme: Karma-phala and the binding force of adharma; embodied experience persists beyond death until exhaustion of results.

Application: Avoid cruelty and adharma; cultivate restraint, truthfulness, and compassion to prevent hellish outcomes; use the imagery as a moral deterrent.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: bhayanaka

Secondary Rasa: bibhatsa

Geographic Context

Type: torment-ground

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana Pretakalpa: naraka-varnana sections describing animal-assault and weather-based torments (adjacent verses in 1.96); Garuda Purana: Yama’s punishments mapped to specific sins in later/nearby catalogues

Characters & Entities

• Indra (Śakra)

FAQs

What is the importance of punishments described with animals in the Garuda Purana?

This verse uses vivid images of animal attacks to convey that karmic consequences can manifest as intense, time-bound torments, emphasizing moral accountability after death.

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

Within the Preta Kanda’s narration on post-death states, it indicates that certain sinners undergo specific ordeals in fixed cycles—each ‘interval’ lasting a full day and night—before moving through further experiences.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Treat it as an ethical warning: avoid cruelty and harmful conduct, cultivate restraint and compassion, and live in a way that reduces fear and suffering for oneself and others.