Shloka 57

नरकयातनावर्णनम् / Description of Hell-Torments for Specific Transgressions

Devanagari script

तानि पापानि घोराणि संति यैश्च नरो भुवि । शतधा भेदमाप्नोति गिरिर्वज्रहतो यथा

Transliteration

tāni pāpāni ghorāṇi saṃti yaiśca naro bhuvi | śatadhā bhedamāpnoti girirvajrahato yathā

Translation

Truly dreadful are those sins by which a man on earth is shattered into a hundred pieces—like a mountain struck by the thunderbolt, the vajra.

Word by Word

• तानि: those
• तानि: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचन; सर्वनाम (pronoun)

• पापानि: sins
• पापानि: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पाप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचन

• घोराणि: terrible
• घोराणि: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: घोर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), बहुवचन; विशेषण (qualifier) पापानि इति

• सन्ति: are
• सन्ति: Kriyā (क्रिया/Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: अस् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन

• यैः: by which (by whom)
• यैः: Karaṇa (करण/Instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/तृतीया), बहुवचन; सम्बन्ध/हेतु-प्रयोग (by whom/with which)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• नरः: a man
• नरः: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन

• भुवि: on earth
• भुवि: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण/Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भू (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/सप्तमी), एकवचन; अधिकरण (locative)

• शतधा: into a hundred parts
• शतधा: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण/Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: शतधा (अव्यय)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषण-अव्यय (adverb)

• भेदम्: splitting, division
• भेदम्: Karma (कर्म/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भेद (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/द्वितीया), एकवचन

• आप्नोति: attains, undergoes
• आप्नोति: Kriyā (क्रिया/Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: आप् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन

• गिरिः: a mountain
• गिरिः: Upamāna (उपमान/Standard of comparison)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गिरि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन

• वज्रहतः: struck by a thunderbolt
• वज्रहतः: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वज्रहत (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक; वज्र + हन् धातु से क्त/क्तवत्-भाव)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/प्रथमा), एकवचन; तृतीया-तत्पुरुष समास (वज्रेण हतः)

• यथा: as, like
• यथा: Upamā (उपमा/Comparison marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यथा (अव्यय)
• Form: उपमा-वाचक अव्यय (comparative particle)

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Shaiva Theology

Tattva Level: pasha

Shiva Form: Bhairava

Shakti Dimension

Shakti Form: Kālī

Role: destructive

Cosmic Context

Cosmic Event: thunderbolt-strike (vajra) imagery

FAQs

What is the spiritual significance of this verse in the Shiva Purana?

It warns that certain grave actions create intense pāpa that destabilizes a person’s inner integrity, producing severe karmic suffering and “fragmentation” of life—an image aligned with Shaiva Siddhanta’s idea of pāśa (bondage) tightening through karma.

How does this verse relate to the worship of the Linga or Saguna Shiva?

By highlighting the destructive force of pāpa, it implicitly points toward taking refuge in Saguna Shiva—especially through Linga-worship, devotion, and surrender—as a stabilizing, purifying path that loosens karmic bondage and restores dharmic wholeness.

What ritualistic or meditative practice is suggested here?

A practical takeaway is to adopt Shiva-centered purification: Panchakshara japa ("Om Namaḥ Śivāya"), sincere confession/repentance, and regular Shiva-puja; where traditional, Tripuṇḍra (bhasma) and Rudrāksha support steadiness and remembrance.