Shloka 17
Svargārohaṇa-parva Adhyāya 2 — Yudhiṣṭhira’s Inquiry for His Kin and the Vision of a Punitive Realm
तमसा संवृतं घोरं केशशैवलशाद्वलम् । युक्त पापकृतां गन्धैर्मासशोणितकर्दमम्
tamasā saṃvṛtaṃ ghoraṃ keśaśaivalśādvalam | yuktaṃ pāpakṛtāṃ gandhair māsaśoṇitakardamam ||
Vaiśampāyana said: The path was shrouded in dreadful darkness, strewn with hair, slime-like growth, and grass. It was fit only for evildoers, reeking with foul odors, and caked with mire of flesh and blood—an image of moral ruin made visible as a landscape.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse externalizes ethical consequence: wrongdoing is portrayed as leading to a realm/path marked by darkness, stench, and impurity. The imagery reinforces the Mahābhārata’s moral logic that adharma degrades the soul’s trajectory and environment.
Vaiśampāyana describes a terrifying, foul route—covered in darkness and filth, with mud of flesh and blood—indicating a passage or region associated with sinners in the Svargārohaṇa (ascent to heaven) context.