Shloka 29
Post-cremation Ripening of Karma and the Principal Narakas
यावद्वर्षसहस्राणि न तेषां स्थितिरन्तरा / घटीयन्त्रेषु बद्वा ये बद्धा तोयवटी यथा
yāvadvarṣasahasrāṇi na teṣāṃ sthitirantarā / ghaṭīyantreṣu badvā ye baddhā toyavaṭī yathā
Selama ribuan tahun sesuai tuntutan karmanya, tak ada jeda bagi mereka; terikat dalam alat roda-ember, mereka terpaut kuat bagaikan kantong kulit pada alat penimba air.
Lord Vishnu (in dialogue instruction to Garuda)
Afterlife Stage: Naraka
Concept: Karmic punishment persists without interval until the specific phala is exhausted; time in naraka is proportionate to deed.
Vedantic Theme: Anādi karma and its fruition; saṃsāric time as a binding force when ignorance-driven action continues.
Application: Do not postpone reform; undertake prāyaścitta and cultivate sattva now, since consequences can be long and uninterrupted.
Primary Rasa: bhayanaka
Secondary Rasa: karuna
Type: infernal mechanical apparatus (ghatīyantra/toya-vatī imagery)
Related Themes: Garuda Purana Pretakalpa: duration formulas ‘yāvadvarṣasahasrāṇi’ used across naraka accounts; Adjacent wheel-torment imagery in 2.3.28 and bodily gore in 2.3.30
FAQs
This verse uses the water-lifting device (ghaṭī-yantra) as a concrete metaphor for repetitive, unbroken suffering—showing how karmic punishment can be continuous, mechanical, and without interval until its term is exhausted.
It indicates that certain souls (preta-like sufferers in Yama’s domain) undergo time-bound punishments with no ‘antarā’ (gap or respite), emphasizing that post-death experiences follow the momentum of karma until its results are fully lived through.
Treat actions as long-term causes: cultivate restraint, truthfulness, and compassion, and follow dharmic conduct—so that one avoids karmic patterns that the text portrays as leading to prolonged, uninterrupted suffering.