Varaha Purana 199.25: Adhyaya 199, Shloka 25

Description of the Torments of Rebirth: The Asipatravana Punishment and the Mechanics of Karmic Retribution

Devanagari script

भो भो पापसमाचाराः धर्मसेतुविनाशकाः ॥ अतो निमित्तं पापिष्ठा यातनाभिः सहस्रशः ॥

Sanskrit recitationVaraha Purana 199.25

Transliteration

bho bho pāpasamācārā dharmasetuvināśakāḥ || ato nimittaṃ pāpiṣṭhā yātanābhiḥ sahasraśaḥ

Translation

“โฮ! โฮ! ผู้ประพฤติบาป ผู้ทำลายสะพานแห่งธรรม—ด้วยเหตุนี้เอง โอ้ผู้บาปยิ่งนัก พวกเจ้าจักถูกทรมานนับพันประการ!”

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Word by Word

• भो: O!
• भो: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: भो (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, सम्बोधनार्थक निपात (vocative particle)

• भो: O!
• भो: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: भो (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, सम्बोधनार्थक निपात

• पापसमाचाराः: you of sinful conduct
• पापसमाचाराः: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पाप + समाचार (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष: ‘पापः समाचारः येषाम्/पापसमाचाराः’ (sinful conduct); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; सम्बोधनार्थे प्रथमा (vocative sense)

• धर्मसेतुविनाशकाः: destroyers of the bridge/embankment of dharma
• धर्मसेतुविनाशकाः: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धर्म + सेतु + विनाशक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: ‘धर्मसेतोः विनाशकाः’; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; सम्बोधनार्थे प्रथमा

• अतः: therefore
• अतः: Adverbial (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अतः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, हेत्वर्थक/तस्मात्-अर्थक (therefore/from this)

• निमित्तम्: cause/reason
• निमित्तम्: Hetu/Reason (हेतु)
• Type: Noun
• Root: निमित्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1st/2nd), एकवचन; here predicate nominative: ‘(एतत्) निमित्तम्’

• पापिष्ठाः: most sinful (ones)
• पापिष्ठाः: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पाप (प्रातिपदिक) → पापिष्ठ (तद्धित/तरप्-तमप्)
• Form: अतिशयवाचक (superlative) ‘-इष्ठ’; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; सम्बोधनार्थे प्रथमा

• यातनाभिः: with tortures
• यातनाभिः: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यातना (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/instrumental), बहुवचन

• सहस्रशः: by thousands / innumerably
• सहस्रशः: Adverbial (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सहस्रशः (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, परिमाण/प्रकारवाचक (in thousands; repeatedly)

Speaker

Varāha (default speaker per dialogue framework; quoted speech may represent punitive agents)

Tags

• Purāṇic Literature
• Dharma Ethics
• Moral Causality
• Afterlife Imagery

FAQs

What is the historical significance of this verse?

It demonstrates the Purāṇic use of metaphor (dharma as a ‘bridge’) to articulate social-moral order and its perceived fragility.

Which geographic location is identified?

No physical geography is identified in this verse; the imagery is ethical and metaphorical within an otherworldly setting.

What is the primary ethical instruction?

Undermining dharma (moral order) is framed as a grave offense with intensified consequences.