Shloka 37
Yama-mārga (Adhvan) and the Courts of Yama: Vaivasvatī and Chitragupta
क्षिप्त्वान्ये च धरापृष्ठे कुठारेणावकर्तिताः / क्रन्दमानाश्च दृश्यन्ते पूर्वकर्मविपाकतः
kṣiptvānye ca dharāpṛṣṭhe kuṭhāreṇāvakartitāḥ / krandamānāśca dṛśyante pūrvakarmavipākataḥ
کچھ اور لوگوں کو زمین پر پٹخ کر کلہاڑی سے کاٹا جاتا ہے؛ وہ چیختے اور روتے ہوئے دکھائی دیتے ہیں—یہ سب سابقہ اعمال کے ویپاک کا نتیجہ ہے۔
Lord Vishnu (narrating to Garuda/Vinata-putra)
Afterlife Stage: Naraka
Concept: Visible suffering and lamentation arise from पूर्वकर्मविपाक; deeds return as experiential pain.
Vedantic Theme: Adhyāsa of agency leading to bondage; karma’s maturation producing duḥkha until tendencies are exhausted.
Application: Practice non-harm and repentance; cultivate dharmic choices now to prevent future lamentation; develop compassion toward sufferers as a spur to reform.
Primary Rasa: karuna
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
Type: execution ground/earth-like floor
Related Themes: Garuda Purana Pretakalpa: repeated refrain ‘पूर्वकर्मविपाकतः’ anchoring punishments in causality
FAQs
This verse states that the pains witnessed in the post-death realm are not random; they are the matured results of one’s own prior actions (pūrva-karma-vipāka).
In the Preta Kanda narrative, the departed being encounters specific torments aligned with past deeds; the wailing and violent punishments depicted here illustrate that the afterlife journey includes experiential consequences of karma under Yama’s order.
Treat actions as seeds that will certainly ripen: cultivate non-violence, restraint, and ethical conduct so that future suffering—described as karma’s fruition—need not be faced.