Shloka 8

Devanagari script

पापिनस्तेषु पच्यन्ते विषशस्त्राग्निदायिनः / उपर्युपरि वै लोका रुद्र ! भूतादयः स्थिताः

Transliteration

pāpinasteṣu pacyante viṣaśastrāgnidāyinaḥ / uparyupari vai lokā rudra ! bhūtādayaḥ sthitāḥ

Translation

ان دوزخوں میں گنہگار پکائے جاتے ہیں—زہر پلانے والے، ہتھیار سے وار کرنے والے، اور آگ لگانے والے۔ اور اے رُدر! ان کے اوپر اوپر درجۂ بدرجہ عوالم ہیں، جہاں بھوت وغیرہ مخلوقات مقیم ہیں۔

Word by Word

• पापिनः: sinners
• पापिनः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पापिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

• तेषु: in those (hells)
• तेषु: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुं/नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), बहुवचन; सर्वनाम

• पच्यन्ते: are cooked/tormented
• पच्यन्ते: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: पच् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन; आत्मनेपद; कर्मणि/भावे अर्थः ‘are cooked/are tormented’

• विषशस्त्राग्निदायिनः: those who administer poison, weapons, and fire
• विषशस्त्राग्निदायिनः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: विष (प्रातिपदिक) + शस्त्र (प्रातिपदिक) + अग्नि (प्रातिपदिक) + दायिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; समाहार-द्वन्द्वपूर्वक-तत्पुरुषभावः (विषं च शस्त्रं च अग्निश्च ददति ये) विशेषणम्

• उपरि: above
• उपरि: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: उपरि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb)

• उपरि: above (and above)
• उपरि: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: उपरि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (adverb); पुनरुक्ति (repetition)

• वै: indeed
• वै: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वै (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (particle; emphasis)

• लोकाः: worlds/realms
• लोकाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: लोक (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

• रुद्र: O Rudra
• रुद्र: Sambodhana (Address/सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: रुद्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सम्बोधन (Vocative), एकवचन

• भूतादयः: beings and the rest (groups beginning with beings)
• भूतादयः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भूत (प्रातिपदिक) + आदि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; तत्पुरुषः (भूताः आदयः येषां ते)

• स्थिताः: are situated
• स्थिताः: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्था (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त (क्त-प्रत्यय, past passive participle); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन; ‘are situated/stand’

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (narrating to Garuda/Vinata-putra)

Pretakalpa Layer

Afterlife Stage: Naraka

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Violent transgressions (poisoning, weapon-injury, arson) yield intense punitive heat; existence is layered by ontological and karmic status.

Vedantic Theme: Adhyāropa of cosmology to teach dharma; karma-phala administered within a structured cosmos under divine governance.

Application: Renounce intentional harm: no poisoning (literal or systemic), no violence, no arson/destruction; adopt protective ethics and conflict de-escalation.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: raudra

Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka

Geographic Context

Type: vertical cosmological strata (loka hierarchy)

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana Pretakalpa: sins leading to specific punishments; cosmological passages that segue from naraka to loka structure

Characters & Entities

• Rudra
• Bhūtas

FAQs

What is the importance of sins like poisoning, assault with weapons, and arson in the Garuda Purana?

This verse groups them as grave, harm-causing acts that lead to intense post-death suffering in specific tormenting realms, emphasizing karma’s direct moral causality.

How does this verse explain the structure of the afterlife worlds (lokas)?

It indicates a vertical ordering—realms arranged “one above another”—with different classes of beings (beginning with Bhūtas) occupying higher strata, suggesting a layered cosmology beyond the punitive regions.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Avoid harm-by-intent actions—poisoning (including covert harm), violence, and destructive fire-setting—and cultivate non-injury (ahiṃsā), accountability, and restitution, aligning conduct with dharma to reduce negative karmic outcomes.