Shloka 86

Matsya Purana — Glory of Tīrtha-Śrāddha: Best Times

Devanagari script

पापं कुत्सितमित्याहुस् तस्य संतापकारिणः अष्टाव् एते यतस्तस्मात् कुतपा इति विश्रुताः //

Transliteration

pāpaṃ kutsitamityāhus tasya saṃtāpakāriṇaḥ aṣṭāv ete yatastasmāt kutapā iti viśrutāḥ //

Translation

Sin is called ‘kutsita’—base and reprehensible—because it brings torment; therefore these eight are renowned as ‘kutapā’, as they belong to that torment-causing class.

Word by Word

• पापम् (pāpam): sin, demerit

• कुत्सितम् (kutsitam): vile, contemptible, reprehensible

• इति (iti): thus

• आहुः (āhuḥ): they say

• तस्य (tasya): of that (sin)

• संतापकारिणः (saṃtāpa-kāriṇaḥ): causing anguish/torment

• अष्टौ (aṣṭau): eight

• एते (ete): these

• यतः (yataḥ): because/since

• तस्मात् (tasmāt): therefore/from that reason

• कुतपाः (kutapāḥ): ‘kutapā’ (a named class/category of sins/torment-causers)

• इति (iti): thus

• विश्रुताः (viśrutāḥ): famed, well-known.

Speaker

• Lord Matsya (in instruction to Vaivasvata Manu, within a dharma-teaching discourse)

Entities Mentioned

• Pāpa (sin)
• Saṃtāpa (torment)

Tags

• Dharma
• Pāpa-Puṇya
• Ethics
• Karmaphala
• Matsya Purana teachings

FAQs

What does this verse reveal about the creation or dissolution (Pralaya)?

This verse is not about pralaya; it defines pāpa as ‘kutsita’ because it brings saṃtāpa (torment), framing karma as an ethical cause-and-effect rather than a cosmological event.

How does this verse relate to the duties of a King or Householder?

It grounds rājadharma and gṛhastha-dharma in karmaphala: actions labeled as pāpa are ‘reprehensible’ specifically because they generate suffering—so governance and daily conduct should avoid those torment-causing categories (here summarized as an ‘eightfold’ class).

What is the architectural or ritual significance mentioned here?

No direct vāstu or temple-rule detail appears in this verse; its ritual relevance is ethical—purificatory rites and expiations (prāyaścitta) are implied as responses to pāpa that causes saṃtāpa.