Shloka 25
Svargārohaṇa-parva Adhyāya 2 — Yudhiṣṭhira’s Inquiry for His Kin and the Vision of a Punitive Realm
कूटशाल्मलिकं चापि दुःस्पर्श तीक्ष्णकण्टकम् । ददर्श चापि कौन्तेयो यातना: पापकर्मिणाम्,जहाँ-तहाँ पैने काँटोंसे भरे हुए सेमलके वृक्ष हैं, जिनको हाथसे छूना भी कठिन है। कुन्तीनन्दन युधिष्ठिरने यह भी देखा कि वहाँ पापाचारी जीवोंको बड़ी कठोर यातनाएँ दी जा रही हैं
kūṭaśālmalikaṃ cāpi duḥsparśa-tīkṣṇa-kaṇṭakam | dadarśa cāpi kaunteyo yātanāḥ pāpa-karmiṇām ||
Vaiśampāyana said: The son of Kuntī also beheld the deceptive śālmalī trees, hard to touch and bristling with sharp thorns; and he saw as well the severe torments being inflicted there upon those who had committed sinful deeds.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Actions bear consequences: those who engage in pāpa (wrongdoing) encounter painful results, depicted here as harsh yātanās. The imagery reinforces ethical accountability and the inevitability of karmic fruition.
Yudhiṣṭhira, guided through the post-mortem realms, witnesses frightening scenes: deceptive śālmalī trees covered with sharp thorns and the severe punishments meted out to sinful beings.