Shloka 39
Viṣṇu-sahasranāma—Yudhiṣṭhira’s Inquiry and Bhīṣma’s Recitation (विष्णोर्नामसहस्रम्)
प्रेतलोकगता होते नरके पापकर्मिण: । पच्यन्ते वै यथा मीना: पूयशोणितभोजना:,ये पापकर्मी मनुष्य प्रेतलोकमें जाकर नरककी आगमें मछलियोंकी तरह पकाये जाते हैं और पीब तथा रक्त भोजन करते हैं
pretalokagatā hote narake pāpakarmiṇaḥ | pacyante vai yathā mīnāḥ pūyaśoṇitabhojanāḥ ||
Dijo Yama: «Quienes cometen actos pecaminosos, tras partir al reino de los difuntos, caen en el infierno. Allí son cocidos en los fuegos como peces, y se les obliga a subsistir de pus y sangre».
यम उवाच
Educational Q&A
Sinful actions (pāpa-karma) lead to painful post-mortem consequences; the graphic imagery is meant to warn and to encourage adherence to dharma and ethical restraint.
Yama, the lord of justice and the dead, describes the fate of wrongdoers: after reaching pretaloka they are cast into naraka, where they undergo torment likened to fish being cooked, and are forced to consume impure substances such as pus and blood.