Narak-Hellish abodes
There are places where sinners are sent to suffer terrifying recompense after death. These abodes are collectively referred to as narak (Devanagari: नरक ISO15919: naraka).
Narak is also the abode of Yamaraj, the god of death. This lok is located beneath the earth, in the southern part of the brahmand. That is why earth these are sometimes referred to as the underworld. Narak is also a material abode but it is subtle or sookshma (Devanagari: सूक्ष्म ISO15919: sūkṣma). So, it cannot be seen with our material eyes.
Vedas are the eternal law of God and list the dos and do nots. Vedas define the forbidden actions or sin as paap (Devanagari: पाप ISO15919: pāpa). Consequence of performing sinful actions is sufferings in narak.
All sins are not equal so the punishment also varies in degree. The jiva is sent to the narak befitting the extent of sin.
Descriptions of narak
Various scriptures have enumerated the names of naraks, the sins for which one is sent there and form of punishment dolled out in that hell. There is significant difference in those details in the scriptures.
There are thousands of narak lok but the Shrimad Bhagavata MahaPurana enumerates 28 naraks, a few of which are described below.
- Andhatamisra (Devanagari: अंध तमिस्र ISO15919: aṁdha tamisra) name means blind-darkness. Those who covet someone else’s property, wife or children are sentenced to this lok. Here the jeev has to starve, crave for water, is beaten up with sticks and is scolded. Due to the severe punishments in this narak at times jeev loses consciousness. Due to darkness he loses sight as well.
- Those who are very cruel to animals and cook them alive are put in boiling oil by Yamadutas in Kumbhipaka (Devanagari: कुंभिपाक ISO15919: kuṁbhipāka) narak.
- Those who insult brahmins/elders or murder them are sent to Kaal Sutra Narak (Devanagari: कालसूत्र ISO15919: kālasūtra). The realm of this narak is made of copper, which is heated by blazing fire from below and red-hot sun from above. Besides, the sinner is also burned from within by unendurable hunger and thirst. He runs here and there, screams and yells, but nobody is there to listen to his woes .
- The Shukaramukha (Devanagari: शूकरमुख ISO15919: śūkaramukha) narak is meant for those in power who punish or torture innocent ones. They are crushed like sugarcane is crushed to extract juice.
- Those who indulge in illicit sexual relations are sent to Taptamurti (Devanagari: तप्तमूर्ति ISO15919: taptamūrti) narak. There Yamdoots brutally whip the sinners and force the jeev to embrace a red hot iron body of the opposite sex.
In the fear of narak is used as a deterrent to prevent the jiva from committing paap.
Before God-realization, every jiva is bound by the law of karma and must undergo the cycles of svarga (heaven), narak (hell), and mrityu lok (earthly realm).
Fear can be a powerful deterrent. For instance, in some countries, theft is punishable by amputation of the hands—and as a result, incidents of theft are extremely rare. In contrast, in places where the punishment for theft is less severe, such crimes are far more common.
This illustrates why it is essential to understand the consequences of one’s actions—to avoid self-inflicted harm. The mind is an active worker; it cannot remain idle even for a moment. If not engaged in good deeds, it will naturally drift toward wrong ones.
That is why, in karmakand (ritualistic path of Vedic actions), the fear of narak is deliberately used as a major deterrent—to keep the jiva away from paap and encourage punya. It is equally important for those who follow the path of bhakti to remember this—so they may resist temptations and avoid drifting away from God.
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