Shloka 30

नरक-निर्णयः, पाप-कर्म-फल-व्यवस्था, प्रायश्चित्त-क्रमः, तथा हरि-स्मरण-परमत्वम्

Devanagari script

एते चान्ये च नरकाः शतशो ऽथ सहस्रशः येषु दुष्कृतकर्माणः पच्यन्ते यातनागताः

Transliteration

ete cānye ca narakāḥ śataśo 'tha sahasraśaḥ yeṣu duṣkṛtakarmāṇaḥ pacyante yātanāgatāḥ

Translation

These—and many other hells besides—exist in their hundreds and even thousands; within them, those of evil deeds are ‘cooked’ in torment, having fallen into the state of punishment.

Word by Word

• एते: these
• एते: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• च: and
• च: Samuccaya (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयार्थक-निपात

• अन्ये: others
• अन्ये: Karta (Co-subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अन्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• च: and
• च: Samuccaya (Connector)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; समुच्चयार्थक-निपात

• नरकाः: hells
• नरकाः: Karta (Predicate nominative/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नरक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• शतशः: by hundreds
• शतशः: Sankhya/Measure (Quantifier)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: शतशः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; परिमाणवाचक-अव्यय (distributive adverb: by hundreds)

• अथ: then/and
• अथ: Discourse connector
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अथ (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; अनुक्रम/आरम्भार्थक-निपात (then/and further)

• सहस्रशः: by thousands
• सहस्रशः: Sankhya/Measure (Quantifier)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सहस्रशः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; परिमाणवाचक-अव्यय (by thousands)

• येषु: in which
• येषु: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• दुष्कृतकर्माणः: evil-doers (those of sinful deeds)
• दुष्कृतकर्माणः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दुष्कृत+कर्मन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; समासः कर्मधारय/तत्पुरुष (दुष्कृतं कर्म येषाम् / दुष्कृतकर्माणि येषाम्)

• पच्यन्ते: are cooked/tormented
• पच्यन्ते: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: पच् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), आत्मनेपद, प्रथम-पुरुष, बहुवचन; कर्मणि-प्रयोग (passive sense)

• यातनागताः: having reached torment / subjected to torture
• यातनागताः: Karta (Qualifier of subject)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: यातना+गत (कृदन्त; गम् (धातु))
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (past participle), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; समासः तत्पुरुष (यातनां गताः)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (in dialogue with Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: The vast multiplicity of hells and the general principle of karmic retribution

Teaching: Cosmological

Quality: authoritative

Cosmological Context

Cosmic Hierarchy: Lokas

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: The cosmos contains innumerable punitive realms where evil deeds mature into experienced suffering, underscoring the inexhaustible specificity of karma-phala.

Vedantic Theme: Karma

Application: Use consequence-awareness to refine choices; pair fear of harm with positive practices (dāna, self-restraint, bhakti) that purify intention.

Vishishtadvaita: Karmic fruition occurs within a structured universe sustained by the Supreme; moral causality is not random but embedded in divine order.

FAQs

What is the significance of Naraka descriptions in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse frames Naraka as a vast system—hundreds and thousands of punitive realms—underscoring that moral causality (karma) operates with comprehensive scope and specificity.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the fate of those who perform sinful actions?

Parāśara states that doers of evil deeds are subjected to intense suffering—described as being ‘cooked’—in many kinds of hells, emphasizing inevitable karmic consequence.

What is the theological importance of Lord Vishnu in this context?

Even when Vishnu is not named in the verse, the teaching supports a Vishnu-centered cosmic sovereignty: the universe is morally ordered, and the fruits of actions unfold within that divinely sustained order.