FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.49.24

स्वयं किल्बिषमादाय तैस्त्यक्तो नार्थकोविद: । असिद्धार्थो विशत्यन्धं स्वधर्मविमुखस्तम: ॥ २४ ॥
svayaṁ kilbiṣam ādāya
[svayam kilbisham aadaaya]
tais tyakto nārtha-kovidaḥ
[tais tyakto naartha-kovidah]
asiddhārtho viśaty andhaṁ
[asiddhaartho vishaty andham]
sva-dharma-vimukhas tamaḥ
[sva-dharma-vimukhas tamah]
Word-for-word
svayam — for himself kilbiṣam — sinful reaction ādāya — taking on taiḥ — by them tyaktaḥ — abandoned na — not artha — the purpose of his life kovidaḥ — knowing properly asiddha — unfulfilled arthaḥ — whose goals viśati — he enters andham — blind sva — his own dharma — to the religious duty vimukhaḥ — indifferent tamaḥ — darkness (of hell) .
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
svayaṁ kilbiṣam ādāya
svayam
for himself
kilbiṣam
sinful reaction
ādāya
taking on
tais tyakto nārtha-kovidaḥ
taiḥ
by them
tyaktaḥ
abandoned
na
not
artha
the purpose of his life
kovidaḥ
knowing properly
asiddhārtho viśaty andhaṁ
asiddha
unfulfilled
arthaḥ
whose goals
viśati
he enters
andham
blind
sva-dharma-vimukhas tamaḥ
sva
his own
dharma
to the religious duty
vimukhaḥ
indifferent
tamaḥ
darkness (of hell) .
Important Words
  • kilbiṣam — sinful reaction
    Vedic term for pollution incurred by transgression. The Bhāgavata insists that only this baggage actually transfers across death; everything 'his' falls away at the boundary.
  • artha-kovidaḥ — knowing properly the purpose
    Compound: artha (goal/meaning) + kovida (one who knows well). The verse negates it (na) — the failure is precisely not knowing what the human birth was for.
  • sva-dharma-vimukhaḥ — indifferent to one's own dharma
    Sva-dharma (one's own duty) + vimukha (face-turned-away). Echoes Gītā 3.35 — sva-dharma even imperfect surpasses para-dharma; the soul who turns away from his own duty walks into tamaḥ.
  • andham — blind
    The very adjective Vyāsa attaches to the deepest hell-regions (andha-tāmisra, andha-tamas — Īśopaniṣad 3, SB 5.26). Said to a blind king, the word's sting is doubled: outer andha is one thing; the inner andha into which the unrighteous soul enters is far worse.
Abandoned by his so-called dependents, ignorant of the actual goal of life, indifferent to his real duty, and having failed to fulfill his purposes, the foolish soul enters the blindness of hell, taking his sinful reactions with him.
Purport

It is sadly ironic that materialistic persons, who labor so assiduously to accumulate insurance, security, property and family, enter the darkness of hell equipped with nothing but the painful reactions of their sins. On the other hand, those who cultivate Kṛṣṇa consciousness, spiritual life, while apparently neglecting to accumulate property, a large family and so on, enter the next life enriched with many spiritual assets and thus enjoy the deep pleasures of the soul.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Gauḍīya Ācāryas
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
Abandoned by his so-called dependents, ignorant of the actual goal of life, indifferent to his real duty, and having failed to fulfill his purposes, the foolish soul enters the blindness of hell, taking his sinful reactions with him.
Jīva Gosvāmī Gauḍīya
Commentary

He enters the greatest hell (andham), not knowing the goal of dharma (nārtha-kovidaḥ). The use of na in the compound is poetic license.

Śrīdhara Svāmī Gauḍīya
Commentary

He takes with him sins produced in order to maintain sons, by receiving another body suitable to his sin. He enters great hell (andham) and suffers a long time since he was opposed to his dharma, being ignorant of the highest goal (nārtha-kovidaḥ), or because he was expert at great sin (na artha).

Related values & verses
Related values
Anahankarah (Freedom from False Ego)Dana (Charity / Generosity)Prema (Divine Love)Svadhyaya (Self-study & Scripture Study)Samata (Equanimity / Even-mindedness)Nyaya (Justice / Righteous Judgment)Shraddha (Faith / Reverence)
Related verses
BG 3.9 BG 9.1 BG 17.20 BG 4.8 BG 15.20 BG 15.7 BG 2.62 BG 3.11 BG 15.2 BG 12.3 BG 3.35
Concepts
Jiva
Related lectures
Personal Guidance
Abandoned by dependents, ignorant of the real goal, indifferent to true duty, the foolish soul enters hell's darkness with sinful reactions. The exit-with-no-resources picture is grim; this is the destination if course doesn't change.
Reflection Questions
  • Where is course-correction overdue in your life?
  • What would you not want to enter the next world carrying?
Analogy

The sinful soul leaves life like a porter shouldered with the bags everyone else has already unloaded — the dependents gone, the goal unrealised, only the karma still clinging to his back as he crosses into the dark.

📝 My note

Source: vedabase.io

← Read full Chapter 49