Shloka 27
नरकनामनिर्णयः
Catalogue of Narakas and Karmic Causes
यावंतो जंतवस्स्वर्गे तावंतो नरकौकसः । पापकृद्याति नरकं प्रायश्चित्तपराङ्मुखः
yāvaṃto jaṃtavassvarge tāvaṃto narakaukasaḥ | pāpakṛdyāti narakaṃ prāyaścittaparāṅmukhaḥ
As many beings as there are in heaven, so many dwell in hell as well. A doer of sin goes to hell when he turns away from expiation (prāyaścitta).
Suta Goswami
Tattva Level: pashu
Shiva Form: Paśupatinātha
FAQs
It stresses moral accountability: heavenly reward is not the only destination—sin that is not purified through sincere prāyaścitta ripens into suffering. In Shaiva terms, unaddressed karma remains a form of pāśa (bondage) that obstructs grace and liberation.
Turning toward prāyaścitta implies turning toward Shiva’s purifying presence. Linga-worship, japa of the Panchākṣarī, and Shaiva observances are presented as concrete ways to realign the mind from wrongdoing toward devotion and purification under Saguna Shiva’s compassionate guidance.
Adopt prāyaścitta through confession, vrata (such as Mahāśivarātri discipline), Panchākṣarī japa ("Om Namaḥ Śivāya"), and purificatory Shaiva practices like Tripuṇḍra (bhasma) and Rudrākṣa with a resolve to abandon the sinful habit.