Shloka 36

The Liberation of the Lizard

Godhā-vimukti

Devanagari script

कालेन पञ्चतां प्राप्ता गता नरकयातनाम् । ताम्रभ्राष्ट्रे ह्यहं दग्धा युगानि दश पञ्च च ॥ ३६ ॥

Transliteration

kālena pañcatāṃ prāptā gatā narakayātanām | tāmrabhrāṣṭre hyahaṃ dagdhā yugāni daśa pañca ca || 36 ||

Translation

时至其时，我命终而被带往地狱受刑。在名为“多摩罗婆罗什吒罗”(Tāmrabhrāṣṭra)的地狱中，我被焚烧了十五劫。

Word by Word

• kālena: by time, in course of time
• kālena: Karaṇa (करण) / instrumental of time
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāla (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Tṛtīyā, Ekavacana

• pañcatām: the state of death
• pañcatām: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pañcatā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga (Feminine/स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Dvitīyā vibhakti (Accusative/द्वितीया), Ekavacana; ‘state of five-ness’ = death

• prāptā: having reached
• prāptā: Kriyā-samānādhikaraṇa (predicate participle)
• Type: Verb
• Root: prāpta (कृदन्त; √āp प्राप्तौ with pra-)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; bhūta-kṛdanta (past participle) used predicatively

• gatā: went
• gatā: Kriyā (क्रिया) / predicate
• Type: Verb
• Root: gata (कृदन्त; √gam गतौ)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; bhūta-kṛdanta (past participle)

• naraka-yātanām: hell-torment
• naraka-yātanām: Karma (कर्म) / destination as object with gatā
• Type: Noun
• Root: naraka (प्रातिपदिक) + yātanā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana; samāsa: narakasya yātanā (ṣaṣṭhī-tatpuruṣa)

• tāmra-bhrāṣṭre: in the copper cauldron/pan
• tāmra-bhrāṣṭre: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tāmra (प्रातिपदिक) + bhrāṣṭra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napuṃliṅga, Saptamī, Ekavacana; samāsa: tāmrasya bhrāṣṭram (karmadhāraya/tatpuruṣa sense ‘copper-pan’)

• hi: indeed
• hi: Particle (निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: Nipāta (particle), emphasis/causal nuance

• aham: I
• aham: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Prathamā, Ekavacana

• dagdhā: was burnt
• dagdhā: Kriyā (क्रिया) / predicate
• Type: Verb
• Root: dagdha (कृदन्त; √dah दाहे)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; bhūta-kṛdanta (past passive participle)

• yugāni: for ages
• yugāni: Kāla-adhikaraṇa (कालाधिकरण) / duration
• Type: Noun
• Root: yuga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Napuṃliṅga, Prathamā/Dvitīyā, Bahuvacana (Plural/बहुवचन); here accusative of duration (kāla-parimāṇa)

• daśa: ten
• daśa: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: daśa (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Numeral (saṃkhyā), indeclinable-like; qualifying yugāni

• pañca: five
• pañca: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pañca (संख्या-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Numeral; qualifying yugāni

• ca: and
• ca: Connector (समुच्चय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Samuccaya-avadhāraṇa (conjunction/समुच्चय)

Speaker

A suffering soul (narrating its karmic fate) within the hell-description discourse

Vrata Kalpa

Vrata: none

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: bhayanaka

Secondary Rasa: karuna

Characters & Entities

• Naraka
• Tāmrabhrāṣṭra

FAQs

What is the spiritual significance of this verse in Narada Purana?

It underscores the inevitability of karmic fruition: after death (pañcatā), the soul experiences specific results of wrongdoing as narakayātanā, meant to warn and redirect one toward dharma and purification.

How does this verse explain the path of devotion (Bhakti)?

By highlighting the terror of karmic punishment, it indirectly motivates refuge in Vishnu-bhakti and dharmic living as protective disciplines that cleanse pāpa and orient the mind toward liberation.

What practical Vedic knowledge (Vedanga) is highlighted here?

No direct Vedāṅga instruction is given; the practical takeaway is dharma-śāstra style ethical causality—actions bring measurable results—supporting ritual and conduct-based atonements (prāyaścitta) found in smṛti and purāṇic practice.