Text 23] The Hellish Planets 459

pitya—pus; sonita—blood; kesa—hair: nakha—nails: asthi—bones:
medah—marrow; mdmsa—flesh; vaséd—fat: vadhinyam—in the river:
upatapyante—are afflicted with pain.

TRANSLATION

A person who is born into a responsible family—such as a
ksatriya, a member of royalty or a government servant—but who
neglects to execute his prescribed duties according to religious
principles, and who thus becomes degraded, falls down at the time
of death into the river of hell known as Vaitarani. This river,
which is a moat surrounding hell, is full of ferocious aquatic
animals. When a sinful man is thrown into the River Vaitarani, the
aquatic animals there immediately begin to eat him, but because of
his extremely sinful life, he does not leave his body. He constantly
remembers his sinful activities and suffers terribly in that river,
which is full of stool, urine, pus, blood, hair, nails, bones, mar-
row, flesh and fat.

TEXT 23

{ fae F qian awatarataaermacst: TAT
aia Y wh Fa gafeqrsaneming = faa
azatatatamated | 23 II

ye tv tha vai vrsali-patayo nasta-saucdcara-niyamas tyakta-layjah pasu-
caryam caranti te capi pretya piiya-vin-miitra-slesma-mala-pirnarnave
nipatanti tad evatibibhatsitam aSnanti.

ye—persons who: tu—but: iha—in this life; vai—indeed: vrsali-
patayah—the husbands of the Stdras; nasta—lost: sauca-dcdra-
niyamah—whose cleanliness, good behavior and regulated life: tyakta-
lajjah—without shame; pasu-caryam—the behavior of animals:
caranti—they execute; te—they: ca—also: api—indeed: pretya—
dying; pitya—of pus: vit—stool: miitra—urine: slesma—mucus:
malé—saliva; piirna—full; arnave—in an ocean: nipatanti—fall: tat—
