Garuda Purana — Preta Kalpa, Shloka 11

Karma-vipāka: Truth, Yama’s Judgment, and the Marks of Sin in Rebirth

Devanagari script

सोढ्वा वै यातनाः सर्वा गत्वा वैवस्वतक्षयम् / निस्तीर्णयातनास्ते तु लोकमायान्ति चिह्निताः

Transliteration

soḍhvā vai yātanāḥ sarvā gatvā vaivasvatakṣayam / nistīrṇayātanāste tu lokamāyānti cihnitāḥ

Translation

Matapos tiisin ang lahat ng pahirap at makarating sa tahanan ni Vaivasvata (Yama), yaong mga nakatawid sa mga parusa ay bumabalik sa daigdig—na may mga tandang nakaukit sa kanila.

Word by Word

• soḍhvā: having endured
• soḍhvā: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sah (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (Gerund), धातु ‘सह्’ → ‘सोढ्वा’ (having endured)

• vai: indeed
• vai: Avyaya (अव्यय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vai (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (emphatic particle)

• yātanāḥ: torments/punishments
• yātanāḥ: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yātanā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), बहुवचन

• sarvāḥ: all
• sarvāḥ: Karma (कर्म) (qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sarva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), बहुवचन; विशेषण (qualifying yātanāḥ)

• gatvā: having gone
• gatvā: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: gam (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (Gerund)

• vaivasvata-kṣayam: the abode of Yama (Vaivasvata)
• vaivasvata-kṣayam: Karma (कर्म) (goal as object with gatvā)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vaivasvata (प्रातिपदिक) + kṣaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; तत्पुरुष (सम्बन्ध: ‘of Vaivasvata/Yama’ + ‘abode/house’)

• nistīrṇa-yātanāḥ: those who have passed through the torments
• nistīrṇa-yātanāḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nis-tṝ (धातु) + yātanā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त/PPP) ‘निस्तीर्ण’ + ‘यातना’; बहुव्रीहि: ‘whose torments are crossed/finished’; पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन

• te: they
• te: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; सर्वनाम (in apposition)

• tu: but/then
• tu: Avyaya (अव्यय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle)

• lokam: to the world
• lokam: Karma (कर्म) (goal/object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: loka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• āyānti: come/arrive
• āyānti: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ā-yā (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), बहुवचन; परस्मैपद

• cihnitāḥ: marked/identified
• cihnitāḥ: Karta (कर्ता) (qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: cihnita (प्रातिपदिक; from cihn ‘to mark’)
• Form: भूतकृदन्त (क्त/PPP), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन; विशेषण (qualifying te)

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (speaking to Garuda/Vinata-putra)

Pretakalpa Layer

Afterlife Stage: Yamaloka Journey

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Even after torments are completed, karmic impressions persist as marks upon return to worldly life.

Vedantic Theme: Karma-phala may be ‘experienced’ yet saṃskāra can remain; bondage continues without deeper purification/knowledge.

Application: Do not assume suffering alone purifies; adopt conscious ethical transformation and spiritual practice to uproot tendencies.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: karuna

Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka

Geographic Context

Type: abode/court

Cross References

Related Themes: Continuation of the pāpa-cihna teaching culminating in 2.46.12 examples; broader naraka-to-rebirth sequences in Pretakalpa.

Characters & Entities

• Yama (Vaivasvata)

FAQs

What is the importance of Yama (Vaivasvata) in Garuda Purana?

This verse frames Yama’s realm as the karmic adjudication stage: beings undergo prescribed punishments there and, after completing them, return to worldly existence.

How does this verse explain the path of the soul after death?

It describes a sequence: experiencing yātanās (torments) in Yama’s abode, finishing those karmic results, and then returning to the world—still ‘marked’ by the impressions/signs of what was undergone.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Live ethically and reduce harmful actions: the text emphasizes that karma has consequences that must be endured, leaving lasting impressions—so restraint, charity, and dharmic conduct are practical safeguards.