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## 108] [Prajñāpanā Sūtra] How do Narakas (hell beings) consume food?
They consume food by transforming the old color, smell, taste, and touch qualities of the pudgalas (matter particles) they ingest, through torment, grinding, and destruction. They completely change these qualities and generate new color, smell, taste, and touch qualities. They then absorb these transformed pudgalas into their body-field from all their atma-pradeshas (regions of the soul).
**The meaning of "sarvatah paharadi" (consuming from all regions):**
* **Sarvatah pahara:** Consuming from all atma-pradeshas.
* **Sarva-atma-pradeshas se aahar parinamaate:** They transform food from all atma-pradeshas.
* **Sarvatah uchchvas-nishvas lete hain:** They breathe in and out from all regions.
* **Sada pahara karte hain:** They always consume.
* **Sada parinat karte hain:** They always transform.
* **Sada uchchvas-nishvas lete hain:** They always breathe in and out.
* **Kadaachit aahar aur parinaman karte hain tatha uchchvas-nishvas lete hain:** Sometimes they consume, transform, and breathe.
**How much do they consume and savor?**
* They consume an infinitesimal fraction of the pudgalas they ingest as food. They are unable to consume the rest.
* They savor an infinite fraction of the pudgalas they consume. Even though they don't savor the rest, those pudgalas still transform into their bodies.
**(Sixth Gate)**
* **All pudgalas consumed as food, or a part of them:** They consume all the pudgalas that are suitable for consumption, leaving behind the rest and transforming them into their bodies. They don't consume just a part of them, because they only consume pudgalas that are suitable for consumption, leaving behind the rest and transforming them into their bodies.
**What form do the consumed pudgalas transform into?**
* The pudgalas consumed by Narakas as food transform again and again into the five senses: hearing, sight, smell, taste, and touch.
* However, these pudgalas, even though they transform into senses, are not auspicious but inauspicious. They transform into undesirable forms.
* Just as flies find camphor and sandalwood, even though they are auspicious, to be undesirable, similarly, these pudgalas, even though they are auspicious, appear undesirable to some beings.
* They transform into forms that are:
* **Akant (Akamaneya):** Not beautiful to look at.
* **Apriya:** Not pleasing to the mind, even when seen.
* **Ashubha:** Having inauspicious color, smell, taste, and touch.
* **Amanognya:** Not generating joy in the mind because they are painful during their ripening.
* **Amanama:** Not acceptable to beings as food.
* **Anipsita:** Not enjoyable to savor.
* **Abhidhyata:** Not generating desire for them.
* They transform into heavy forms, not light forms.
**(Eighth Gate)**
* **Seven Gates (2-8) related to Bhavanapatis (lords of the realms):** 1806, [1]
**(Asurkumara (son of an Asura) asks the monk):**
* **Asurkumara:** "Bhanta! What is food?"
* **Monk:** "Food is..."
* **Asurkumara:** "And just as it is for humans, so it is for Asura Kumaras, as long as they enjoy, eat, and transform."
* **Monk:** "In that case, the consumption of food by those who have the power of enjoyment is described in the fourth chapter of the scriptures."
**(Footnotes):**
* **1:** Prajñāpanā (Haribhadriya Tika) Bha. 5, Pa. 549 to 552
* **2:** Prajñāpanā Prameyabodhini Tika Bha. 5, 5. 555 to 559