Text 21] Description of Adverse Fruitive Activities 1299

the Yamaditas, who bind him by the neck with strong rope and cover
his subtle body so that he may undergo severe punishment.

PURPORT

Every living entity is covered by a subtle and gross body. The subtle
body is the covering of mind, ego, intelligence and consciousness. It is
said in the scriptures that the constables of Yamaraja cover the subtle
body of the culprit and take him to the abode of Yamaraja to be pun-
ished in a way that he is able to tolerate. He does not die from this pun-
ishment because if he died, then who would suffer the punishment? It is
not the business of the constables of Yamaraja to put one to death. In
fact, it is not possible to kill a living entity because factually he is eternal;
he simply has to suffer the consequences of his activities of sense
gratification.

The process of punishment is explained in the Caitanya-caritamyta.
Formerly the king’s men would take a criminal in a boat in the middle
of the river. They would dunk him by grasping a bunch of his hair and
thrusting him completely underwater, and when he was almost suffocated,
the king’s constables would take him out of the water and allow him to
breathe for some time, and then they would again dunk him in the water
to suffocate. This sort of punishment is inflicted upon the forgotten soul
by Yamaraja, as will be described in the following verses.

TEXT 21

TafatrageteTtaatTaTy: |
qfe afinheran waist AAT ATT 1221

tayor nirbhinna-hrdayas
tarjanair jata-vepathuh

pathi svabhir bhaksyamana
arto ’gham svam anusmaran

tayoh—of the Yamaditas; nirbhinna—broken; hrdayah—his heart;
tarjanaih—by the threatening; jata—arisen; vepathuh—trembling; pathi—on
the road;svabhih—by dogs; bhaksyamanah—being bitten; artah—distressed;
agham—sins; svam—his; anusmaran—remembering.
