Markandeya Purana — Adhyaya 15, Shloka 16
Adhyaya 15 — Karmic Retribution: Rebirths After Naraka and the King’s Compassion in Hell
तस्यामपत्यमुत्पाद्य काष्ठान्तः कीटको भवेत् ।
शूकरः कृमिको मद्गुश्चण्डालश्च प्रजायते ॥
tasyām apatyam utpādya kāṣṭhāntaḥ kīṭako bhavet | śūkaraḥ kṛmiko madguś caṇḍālaś ca prajāyate ||
既使她怀孕生嗣之后，此人便成木中之虫。又转生为野猪、蠕虫、madgu（名录中所列之水生物/鸟类），并且亦生为旃陀罗。
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FAQs
The verse intensifies the karmaphala logic: transgressive desire does not end with the act; it ‘generates’ further entanglement (offspring/continuation) and thus further constricted births. Purāṇic ethics often warn that kāma, when ungoverned by dharma, multiplies bondage.
Dharma-anuśāsana and karmaphala narration—supporting ethical governance rather than sarga/pratisarga/manvantara genealogies.
The image ‘insect inside wood’ suggests hidden corrosion: a private, concealed act becomes an inner gnawing tendency (vāsanā) that ‘hollows out’ one’s future embodiment and social-spiritual agency.