Shloka 35
Svapnādhāya (Dream-Chapter): Causes, Forms, Nourishment, and Liberation of Pretas
न जानीमो दिशं तात विदिशं चातिदुः खिताः / क्व नु गच्छामहे मूढाः पिशाचाः कर्मजा वयम्
na jānīmo diśaṃ tāta vidiśaṃ cātiduḥ khitāḥ / kva nu gacchāmahe mūḍhāḥ piśācāḥ karmajā vayam
اے عزیز، ہم سخت غم میں نہ کوئی سمت جانتے ہیں نہ ذیلی راہ۔ ہم گمراہ کہاں جائیں؟ ہم اپنے ہی کرموں سے پیدا ہوئے پِشَچ ہیں۔
Afflicted piśācas/karma-born spirits (as quoted within the Vishnu–Garuda dialogue narrative)
Afterlife Stage: Pretayoni
Concept: Karma-born identity: ‘we are piśācas, born of our deeds’; delusion and disorientation are fruits of papa.
Vedantic Theme: Avidyā and karma construct experiential worlds; identification with a degraded yoni is a product of saṃskāra and vāsanā.
Application: Cultivate right action and right view; seek guidance (śāstra, guru, sādhus) to avoid moral and cognitive disorientation; support rites that provide ‘direction’ to the departed.
Primary Rasa: karuna
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
Type: crossroads/trackless liminal space
Related Themes: Garuda Purana: motifs of preta wandering, not finding direction, and crying out for help (recurrent in Pretakalpa); Garuda Purana śrāddha sections: rites as ‘path-making’ for the departed (thematic)
FAQs
This verse highlights that certain post-death states arise from one’s own actions: the spirit’s confusion and misery are presented as karmic consequences, not random fate.
It depicts a disoriented, sorrow-stricken condition where the being cannot discern direction—symbolizing a restless, unresolved post-death wandering that occurs when karma and impurity dominate.
Live with ethical restraint and clarity (dharma) and avoid harmful actions that cloud the mind; the verse warns that delusion and suffering can follow one’s deeds beyond death.