Shloka 24
Entry into Yama’s Abode; Nature, Causes, and Signs of the Preta-State
पितृमातृनिहन्ता च देवब्राह्मणनिन्दकः / इत्यादोषमवाप्नोति सा पीडा प्रेतसम्भवा
pitṛmātṛnihantā ca devabrāhmaṇanindakaḥ / ityādoṣamavāpnoti sā pīḍā pretasambhavā
One who kills one’s father or mother, and one who reviles the Devas and the Brāhmaṇas—such persons incur the suffering belonging to the state of a preta.
Lord Vishnu (in dialogue with Garuda/Vinatā-putra)
Afterlife Stage: Pretayoni
Concept: Grave adharma (matr/pitr-himsa, deva-brahmana-ninda) ripens as preta-affliction after death.
Vedantic Theme: Karma-phala-niyati (inevitability of results) and the binding power of papa leading to lower post-mortem states.
Application: Cultivate reverence toward parents, devas, and brahmanas; avoid slander and violence; undertake expiation and dharmic conduct to prevent preta-bhoga.
Primary Rasa: bhayanaka
Secondary Rasa: karuna
Related Themes: Garuda Purana Pretakalpa: preta-lakshana and preta-pida descriptions in adjacent adhyayas of Preta-khanda/Preta-kalpa; Garuda Purana: lists of mahapatakas and their fruits (papa-phala) in dharma-oriented sections
FAQs
This verse links severe sins to “preta-born” affliction, showing that moral transgressions can manifest as suffering in the immediate post-death condition before onward journey and judgment.
It indicates that the departed may experience a specific category of torment—preta-sambhavā pīḍā—implying that karmic results begin to operate soon after death in the subtle, transitional state.
Cultivate reverence and ethical restraint—especially toward parents, sacred teachers, and the divine—since the text frames such conduct as directly shaping one’s post-death wellbeing.