Varaha Purana 162.32: Adhyaya 162, Shloka 32
The Efficacy and Merit of Cakra-tīrtha
Uttara Bhāga · Dharma-śāstric Ethics (Prāyaścitta and Social Contagion of Pāpa)
आत्मनस्त्यागिनश्चैव आपस्तम्बोऽब्रवीदिदम् ॥ आत्मघाती नरः पापो नरके पच्यते चिरम् ॥
ātmanastyāginaś caiva āpastambo ’bravīd idam || ātmaghātī naraḥ pāpo narake pacyate ciram ||
AtmanastyAginashchaiva Apastambo.abravIdidam || AtmaghAtI naraH pApo narake pachyate chiram
आपस्तम्ब ने कहा कि जो अपने आप को छोड़ देता है वो गलत है। जो इंसान अपने आप को मारता है वो पापी है। ऐसा इंसान नरक में बहुत टाइम तक पकता रहता है।
Sandhi Notes
- आत्मनस्त्यागिनश्चैव = आत्मनः + त्यागिनः + च + एव
- आपस्तम्बोऽब्रवीदिदम् = आपस्तम्बः + अब्रवीत् + इदम्
Varāha
Curious
What is the dharmic status and consequence of abandoning one’s own life (ātma-tyāga/ātmahatyā), and what do authoritative dharma sources say?
Life is not to be renounced through violence against oneself; suffering does not license adharma, and śāstra condemns self-killing.
In despair or pain, seek dharmic supports—community, counsel, medical care, prayer—rather than self-harm; cultivate kṣānti (forbearance).
Citing Āpastamba: suicide (ātmahatyā) is pāpa; the self-killer is tormented in naraka for a long time.
Violation leads to prolonged naraka suffering; adherence to dharma (non-self-harm, endurance, seeking lawful remedies) avoids that fate and supports auspicious gati.
Varāha Purāṇa 162.31–34 (narrative buildup: pain, death, śāstra consultation, eligibility debate)
FAQs
It preserves a Dharmaśāstric-style ethical stance within a Purāṇic narrative frame, explicitly invoking Āpastamba as an authoritative voice.
No explicit geographic location appears in this verse.
The verse frames self-killing (ātmaghāta) as a serious moral transgression with severe post-mortem consequences.
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