SB 5.26.11

SB 5.26.11

Devanagari

ये त्विह यथैवामुना विहिंसिता जन्तव: परत्र यमयातनामुपगतं त एव रुरवो भूत्वा तथा तमेव विहिंसन्ति तस्माद्रौरवमित्याहू रुरुरिति सर्पादतिक्रूरसत्त्वस्यापदेश: ॥ ११ ॥

Verse text

ye tv iha yathaivāmunā vihiṁsitā jantavaḥ paratra yama-yātanām upagataṁ ta eva ruravo bhūtvā tathā tam eva vihiṁsanti tasmād rauravam ity āhū rurur iti sarpād ati-krūra-sattvasyāpadeśaḥ.

Synonyms

ye those who ; tu but ; iha in this life ; yathā as much as ; eva certainly ; amunā by him ; vihiṁsitāḥ who were hurt ; jantavaḥ the living entities ; paratra in the next life ; yama yātanām upagatam — being subjected to miserable conditions by Yamarāja ; te those living entities ; eva indeed ; ruravaḥ rurus (a kind of envious animal) ; bhūtvā becoming ; tathā that much ; tam him ; eva certainly ; vihiṁsanti they hurt ; tasmāt because of this ; rauravam Raurava ; iti thus ; āhuḥ learned scholars say ; ruruḥ the animal known as ruru ; iti thus ; sarpāt than the snake ; ati krūra — much more cruel and envious ; sattvasya of the entity ; apadeśaḥ the name .

Translation

In this life, an envious person commits violent acts against many living entities. Therefore after his death, when he is taken to hell by Yamarāja, those living entities who were hurt by him appear as animals called rurus to inflict very severe pain upon him. Learned scholars call this hell Raurava. Not generally seen in this world, the ruru is more envious than a snake.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

The living beings that were injured by him become rurus and commit violence to him while he suffers the pains of Yama. Therefore this place is called Raurava. Ruru is the name of a living entity more cruel than a snake. In this way their actions are reversed. According to Śrīdhara Svāmī, the ruru is type of antelope. Jīva Gosvāmī says according the definition given by Śukadeva, the ruru is a particular animal not well know in this world.

Purport

According to Śrīdhara Svāmī, the ruru is also known as the bhāra-śṛṅga ( ati-krūrasya bhāra-śṛṅgākhya-sattvasya apadeśaḥ saṁjṣā ). Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī confirms this in his Sandarbha: ruru-śabdasya svayaṁ muninaiva ṭīkā-vidhānāl lokeṣv aprasiddha evāyaṁ jantu-viśeṣaḥ. Thus although rurus are not seen in this world, their existence is confirmed in the śāstras.