Agni Purana — Yoga & Brahma-vidya, Shloka 32
Chapter 370: नरकनिरूपणम्
Naraka-nirūpaṇa) — Description of Hell (with the physiology of dying and the subtle transition
ब्रह्महा क्षयरोगी स्यात् सुरापः श्यावदन्तकः स्वर्णहारी तु कुनखी दुश् चर्मा गुरुतल्पगः
brahmahā kṣayarogī syāt surāpaḥ śyāvadantakaḥ svarṇahārī tu kunakhī duś carmā gurutalpagaḥ
ಬ್ರಾಹ್ಮಣಹಂತಕನು ಕ್ಷಯರೋಗಿಯಾಗುತ್ತಾನೆ; ಸುರಾಪಾನಿ ಶ್ಯಾವದಂತಕನಾಗುತ್ತಾನೆ. ಸ್ವರ್ಣಹಾರಿ ಕುನಖಿ (ನಖರೋಗಿ) ಆಗುತ್ತಾನೆ; ಗುರುತಲ್ಪಗನು ದುಶ್ಚರ್ಮನಾಗುತ್ತಾನೆ.
Lord Agni (in discourse to sage Vasiṣṭha, typical Agni Purāṇa frame)
Vidya Category: {"primary_vidya":"Dharmashastra","secondary_vidya":"Ayurveda","practical_application":"Links moral transgression to embodied disease-signs, used for ethical instruction and for interpreting suffering as karmic fruition within a dharma framework (not as clinical diagnosis).","sutra_style":true}
Encyclopedic Reference: {"reference_type":"List","entry_title":"Karmic somatic markers of mahāpātaka","lookup_keywords":["kṣayaroga","śyāvadanta","kunakhī","duścarma","mahāpātaka"],"quick_summary":"The verse gives bodily afflictions as karmic fruits: brahmahatyā → consumption (kṣayaroga), surāpāna → dark teeth, gold theft → diseased nails, guru-talpa → foul skin."}
Concept: Adharma manifests as duḥkha in the body; karmic residue can appear as recognizable physical signs (liṅga) corresponding to specific grave sins.
Application: Encourages self-audit and repentance; frames suffering within ethical responsibility and motivates corrective conduct and expiation.
Khanda Section: Dharma-shastra / Prāyaścitta (Sin, expiation, and karmic consequences)
Primary Rasa: bhayanaka
Secondary Rasa: karuna
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"Four afflicted figures shown as karmic exempla: a wasting consumptive, a person with blackened teeth, a person with diseased nails, and a person with foul skin—each paired with a symbolic act (killing a brāhmaṇa, drinking liquor, stealing gold, violating guru’s bed).","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural, four-register composition with stylized human figures showing kṣaya emaciation, dark teeth, nail disease, skin lesions; Yama/Dharma as moral witness; strong outlines, traditional palette.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting, gold-bordered quadrants, each quadrant shows a sinner and the resulting bodily mark, ornate halos for Dharma as central judge, rich colors and embossed detailing.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore style instructional chart, clean linework, subtle shading, labeled bodily symptoms (teeth, nails, skin, wasting), minimal background, didactic clarity.","mughal_miniature_prompt":"Mughal miniature, naturalistic portrait studies of the four conditions with fine detail, small narrative vignettes of the sins in margins, muted palette, precise brushwork."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"contemplative","suggested_raga":"Bhairav","pace":"slow","voice_tone":"instructional"}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: क्षयरोगी = क्षय-रोगी; श्यावदन्तकः = श्याव-दन्तकः; दुश् + चर्मा → दुश्चर्मा
Related Themes: Agni Purana 370 (karmaphala/prāyaścitta continuum)
FAQs
It codifies pāpa-phala: the specific bodily afflictions traditionally said to arise from the four major transgressions (mahāpātakas), serving as a diagnostic mapping of sin-to-result used in Dharma/Prāyaścitta discussions.
Alongside ritual, polity, and other sciences, the Agni Purāṇa also preserves Dharmaśāstra-style catalogues of offenses and consequences—systematizing ethics, social order, and expiatory reasoning in a compact, reference-like form.
It warns that grave violations generate corresponding suffering in embodied life, reinforcing restraint (niyama) and motivating confession and expiation (prāyaścitta) to prevent or mitigate karmic fallout.