Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 5.26.11
Ūti· What drives us to actViolence Brings Pain in Return
“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.”
What the purport teaches
- An envious person who hurts living entities faces severe pain after death in the hell called Raurava.
- The living entities he hurt appear as rurus and inflict pain upon him. The ruru is described as more envious than a snake.
- Śrīdhara Svāmī also calls the ruru bhāra-śṛṅga. Although these creatures are not seen in this world, their existence is confirmed in the śāstras.
Try this today
Notice one feeling of envy today, and pause rather than act in a way that hurts someone.
Ask yourself
How might envy lead me to hurt another living being?
Carry the question through the day, then answer it in your own words before sleep.
The study points, practice and question are short summaries drawn from Śrīla Prabhupāda's translation and purport. Read the full purport to go deeper.