Shloka 57
Adhyaya 14 — The Messenger of Yama Explains Karmic Retribution and the Causes of Naraka Torments
गोबाह्मणाग्नयः स्पृष्टा यैरुच्छिष्टैर्नरेश्वर ।
तेषामेतेऽग्निकुम्भेषु लेलिह्यन्त्याहिताः कराः ॥
gobāhmaṇāgnayaḥ spṛṣṭā yairucchiṣṭairnareśvara / teṣāmete 'gnikumbheṣu lelihyantyāhitāḥ karāḥ
Wahai raja, mereka yang karena kenajisan sisa makanan (ucchiṣṭa) menyentuhkan noda pada sapi, brāhmaṇa, dan api suci—tangan mereka diletakkan dalam bejana api dan di sana terus dijilat oleh nyala api.
{ "primaryRasa": "dharma", "secondaryRasa": "raudra", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }
FAQs
Purity rules are not mere externalism here: they encode reverence and restraint. Careless defilement of sacred recipients (cow, Brāhmaṇa, fire) is treated as sacrilege, with punishment directed at the offending organ—hands.
Dharma/karmaphala instruction; not pañcalakṣaṇa.
Hands symbolize agency (kartṛtva). Fire symbolizes moral law and transformation. The image teaches that misused agency is ‘processed’ by the very principle it offended—Agni as purifier becomes Agni as tormentor.