Shloka 76

उमास्वयंवरः / भवोद्वाहः, गणसमागमः, अविमुक्तक्षेत्रमाहात्म्यम्, तथा विनायक-उत्पत्तिसूचना

Devanagari script

वाराणस्यां कृतं पापं पैशाच्यनरकावहम् कृत्वा पापसहस्राणि पिशाचत्वं वरं नृणाम्

Transliteration

vārāṇasyāṃ kṛtaṃ pāpaṃ paiśācyanarakāvaham kṛtvā pāpasahasrāṇi piśācatvaṃ varaṃ nṛṇām

Translation

Le péché commis à Vārāṇasī mène à l’enfer d’une existence semblable à celle d’un piśāca. Même après des milliers d’actes fautifs, pour les hommes, devenir piśāca est encore tenu pour l’issue la plus « préférable », tant la rétribution karmique à Kāśī est d’une rigueur exceptionnelle.

Word by Word

• वाराणस्याम् (vārāṇasyām): in Vārāṇasī/Kāśī

• कृतम् (kṛtam): done, committed

• पापम् (pāpam): sin, demerit

• पैशाच्य-नरक-आवहम् (paiśācya-naraka-āvaham): bringing the hell connected with piśāca-state

• कृत्वा (kṛtvā): having done

• पाप-सहस्राणि (pāpa-sahasrāṇi): thousands of sins

• पिशाचत्वम् (piśācatvam): the state of being a piśāca

• वरम् (varam): preferable, better

• नृणाम् (nṛṇām): of men/humans

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating to the sages of Naimisharanya, within the Kashi-mahatmya context)

Characters & Entities

• Varanasi (Kashi)

FAQs

What is the importance of this verse in the context of Linga worship?

It warns that in Śiva’s own kṣetra (Kāśī), offenses and sinful conduct carry intensified karmic consequences; therefore, Linga-pūjā there must be done with śuddhi (purity), restraint, and reverence to avoid deeper pasha (bondage).

How does this verse describe the nature of Shiva (Shiva-tattva)?

By implying that Kāśī is uniquely charged with Śiva’s presence as Pati, it shows that proximity to Shiva-tattva magnifies truth: dharma yields swift uplift, while adharma yields swift downfall—revealing Śiva as the sovereign regulator of karma and liberation.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

A takeaway aligned with Pāśupata discipline is ethical self-restraint (yama-like conduct), avoidance of aparādha in sacred space, and intentional purification before Linga-pūjā—so the pashu does not tighten its own pasha through heedless action.