Vamana Purana — Karmic Causes of Narakas, Shloka 20
Karmic Causes of Narakas and the Irremediability of Ingratitude (Kṛtaghna-doṣa)
पायसं कृशरं मांसं वृथा भुक्तानि यैर्नरैः तेषामयोगुडास्तप्ताः क्षिप्यन्ते वदने ऽद्भुताः
pāyasaṃ kṛśaraṃ māṃsaṃ vṛthā bhuktāni yairnaraiḥ teṣāmayoguḍāstaptāḥ kṣipyante vadane 'dbhutāḥ
ਜਿਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਮਨੁੱਖਾਂ ਨੇ ਵਿਅਰਥ (ਬਿਨਾਂ ਭੋਗ ਲਗਾਏ) ਖੀਰ, ਖਿਚੜੀ ਅਤੇ ਮਾਸ ਖਾਧਾ ਹੈ, ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਦੇ ਮੂੰਹ ਵਿੱਚ ਤਪਦੇ ਹੋਏ ਲੋਹੇ ਦੇ ਗੋਲੇ ਪਾਏ ਜਾਂਦੇ ਹਨ।
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FAQs
Food is not merely consumption but a moral act tied to gratitude, restraint, and (often) ritual context. ‘Vṛthā-bhojana’ here warns against waste, heedlessness, or indulgence divorced from dharma—implying that misuse of sustenance incurs grave demerit.
It functions as dharma-śikṣā embedded in cosmological narrative (naraka descriptions). While not one of the five core genealogical/cosmic headings by itself, it is commonly housed within sarga/pratisarga-style cosmography and moral instruction sections.
The mouth receiving heated iron balls mirrors the misuse of the mouth (overindulgence, waste, irreverent eating). The punishment is a reversal: what was sought as pleasure through taste becomes the instrument of pain.