Garuda Purana

यतस्ततोऽश्रन्मार्जारो खद्योतो वहदाहकः । कृमिः पर्युषितादः स्यान्मत्सरी भ्रमरो भवेत् ॥ २,२.

A cat is born from eating leftovers; a firefly from carrying fire; a worm from eating stale food; an envious person becomes a bee.

अग्न्युत्सादी तु कुष्ठी स्याददत्ताऽदानतो वृषः । सर्पो गोहारकोऽन्नस्य हारकः स्यादजीर्णवान् ॥ २,२.

One who destroys fire becomes a leper; one who takes what is not given becomes a bull; a thief of cows becomes a snake; a thief of food becomes one with indigestion.

जलहारी तु मत्स्यः स्यात्क्षीरहारी बलाकिका । अन्नं पर्युषितं विप्रे प्रददत्कुब्जतां व्रजेत् ॥ २,२.

A fish is born from stealing water; a heron from stealing milk; a Brahmin who gives stale food becomes hunchbacked.

फलानि हरते यस्तु सन्ततिर्म्रियते खग । अदत्त्वा भक्ष्यमश्राति ह्यनपत्यो भवेन्नरः ॥ २,२.

One who steals fruit causes the death of his offspring as a bird; one who eats without giving food becomes childless.

प्रवज्यागमनाद्राजन् भवेन्मरुपिशाचकः । चातको जलहर्ता स्याज्जन्मान्धः पुंस्तकं हरन् ॥ २,२.

O king, one who comes after renouncing becomes a ghost; a chataka is born from stealing water; one who steals a book becomes blind from birth.

प्रतिश्रुत्य द्विजेभ्योर्ऽथमददज्जम्बुको भवेत् । परिवादादिजातीनां लभते काच्छपीं तनुम् ॥ २,२.

If one promises wealth to Brahmins but does not give it, he becomes a jackal; those born of slander and similar faults obtain the body of a tortoise.

दुर्भगः फलविक्रेता वृकश्च वृषलीपतिः । मार्जारोऽग्निं पदा स्पृष्ट्वा रोगवान्परमांसभुक् ॥ २,२.

An unfortunate fruit seller, a wolf, the husband of a low-caste woman, a cat who touches fire with its foot, and one who eats the flesh of others—all become diseased.

जलप्रस्त्रवणं यस्तु भिन्द्यान्मत्स्यो भवेन्नरः । हरेः कथां न शृण्वन्ति ये न साधुजनस्तवम् ॥ २,२.

Whoever breaks a water channel becomes a fish; those who do not listen to the stories of Hari or praise of the virtuous are not counted among the good.

तान्नरान्कर्णमूलोऽयं व्याप्नुयान्नेतराञ्जनान् । परस्याननसंस्थं यो ग्रासं हरि मन्दधीः ॥ २,२.

This root of the ear afflicts those men who do not listen, while the dull-witted one who snatches food from another's mouth becomes a monkey.

देवोपकरणान्येनं गण्डमालिनमीहते । दम्भेनाचरते धर्मं गजचर्मा भवेत्तु सः ॥ २,२.

He who covets the offerings meant for the gods, or who performs religious acts out of hypocrisy, becomes one wearing an elephant's hide.

शिरोऽर्तिप्रमुखा रोगा यान्ति विश्वासघातकम् । लिङ्गपीडी शिवस्वं च शिवनिर्माल्यमेव च ॥ २,२.

Headaches and other chief diseases afflict the betrayer of trust; one who harms the liṅga, Shiva's property, or Shiva's remnants also suffers.

स्त्रियोऽप्यनेन मार्गेण हृत्वा दोषमवाप्नुयुः । एतेषामेव जन्तूनां भार्यात्वमुपजायते ॥ २,२.

Women, too, by following this path and committing such faults, incur sin; they are born as the wives of these very creatures.

भोगान्ते नरकस्यैतत्सर्वमित्यवधारय । खघ प्रदर्श्यमेतत्तु मयोक्तं ते समासतः । द्रव्यप्रकारा हि यथा तथैव प्राणिजातयः ॥ २,२.

Know that all these things come at the end of enjoyment in hell; O bird, I have shown you this in summary, just as there are various kinds of substances, so too are there various kinds of living beings.

एवं विचित्रैर्निजकर्मभिर्नृणां सुखस्य दुः खस्य च जन्मनामपि । वैचित्र्यमुक्तं शुभकर्मतः शुभं तथाशुभाच्चाशुभमीरयन्ति ॥ २,२.

Thus, by their own diverse actions, people experience the variety of happiness and suffering in their births; from good deeds comes good, and from evil deeds comes evil.

एतत्ते सर्वंमाख्यातं यत्पृष्टोऽहमिह त्वया ॥ २,२.

All this I have told you, as you asked me here.

श्रीगरुडमहापुराणम् ३ सूत उवाच । एवमुत्साहितः पक्षी स्वरूपं निरयस्य तु । पप्रच्छनरकाण्येवं श्रुत्वा चोत्कूलितान्तरः ॥ २,३.

Sūta said: Thus inspired, the bird, his heart stirred after hearing this, asked about the forms of hell.

गरुड उवाच । नरकाणां स्वरूपं मे वद येषु विकर्मिणः । पात्यन्ते दुः खभूयिष्ठास्तेषां भेदांश्च कीर्तय ॥ २,३.

Garuḍa said: Tell me the nature of the hells where wrongdoers are cast down, and describe their varieties.

श्रीभगवानुवाच । नरकाणां सहस्राणि वर्तन्ते ह्यरुणानुज । शक्यं विस्तरतो नैव वक्तुं प्राधान्यतो ब्रुवे ॥ २,३.

The Blessed Lord said: There are thousands of hells, O younger brother of Aruṇa; it is not possible to describe them all in detail, but I will tell you the principal ones.

रौरवं नाम नरकं मुख्यं तद्वैनिबोध मे । रौरवे कूटसाक्षी तु याति यश्चानृती नरः ॥ २,३.

Know from me that Raurava is the chief hell; in Raurava, the false witness and the liar go.

योजनानां सहस्रे द्वे रौरवो हि प्रमाणतः । जानुमात्रप्रमाणं तु तत्र गर्तं सुदुस्तरम् ॥ २,३.

Raurava measures two thousand yojanas; there is a pit there, knee-deep, extremely difficult to cross.

तत्राङ्गारचयौघेन कृतं तद्धरणीसमम् । तत्राग्निना सुतीव्रेण तापिताङ्गारभूमिना ॥ २,३.

There, a mass of burning coals is spread out, level with the ground, and the earth is heated by intense fire.

तन्मध्ये पापकर्माणं विमुञ्चन्ति यमानुगाः । स दह्यमानस्तीव्रेण वह्निना परिधावति ॥ २,३.

In the midst of that, the attendants of Yama cast those who have committed evil deeds; burning with intense fire, they run about.

पदेपदे च पादोऽस्य स्फुट्यते शीर्यते पुनः । अहोरात्रेणोद्धरणं पादन्यासेन गच्छति ॥ २,३.

At every step, their feet burst and fall apart again; in a day and night, by placing their feet, they move forward.

एवं सहस्रं विस्तीर्णं योजनानां विमुच्यते । ततोऽन्यत्पापशुद्ध्यर्थं तादृङ्निरयमृच्छति ॥ २,३.

Thus, for a thousand yojanas in extent, one is released; then, for the purification of other sins, he reaches another such hell.

रौरवस्ते समाख्यातः प्रथमो नरको मया । महारौरवसंज्ञं तु शृणुष्व नरकं खग ॥ २,३.

I have described to you Raurava, the first hell; now, O bird, listen to the hell called Mahāraurava.

योजनानां सहस्राणि सन्ति पञ्च समन्ततः । तत्र ताम्रमयी भूमिरधस्तस्या हुताशनः ॥ २,३.

There, five thousand yojanas in every direction, is a land of copper below which is blazing fire.

तया तपन्त्या सा सर्वा प्रोद्यद्विद्युत्समप्रभा । विभाव्यते महारौद्रा पापिनां दर्शनादिषु ॥ २,३.

That land, burning and shining like a flashing lightning, appears exceedingly terrifying to sinners in all their perceptions.

तस्यां बद्धकराभ्यां च पद्भ्यां चैव यमानुगैः । मुच्यते पापकृन्मध्ये लुण्ठमानः स गच्छति ॥ २,३.

There, with hands and feet bound by the servants of Yama, the sinner is cast into the midst and dragged about.

काकैर्बकैर्वृकोलूकैर्मशकैर्वृश्चिकैस्तथा । भक्ष्यमाणैस्तथा रौद्रैर्गतो मार्गे विकृष्यते ॥ २,३.

On the way, he is dragged while being devoured by crows, herons, wolves, owls, mosquitoes, and scorpions, all fierce.