Srimad Bhagavatam — Dvadasha Skandha, Shloka 7
Brahmā’s Day, the Four Pralayas, and the Supreme Shelter Beyond Cause–Effect
पर्जन्य: शतवर्षाणि भूमौ राजन् न वर्षति । तदा निरन्ने ह्यन्योन्यं भक्ष्यमाणा: क्षुधार्दिता: । क्षयं यास्यन्ति शनकै: कालेनोपद्रुता: प्रजा: ॥ ७ ॥
parjanyaḥ śata-varṣāṇi bhūmau rājan na varṣati tadā niranne hy anyonyaṁ bhakṣyamāṇāḥ kṣudhārditāḥ kṣayaṁ yāsyanti śanakaiḥ kālenopadrutāḥ prajāḥ
As annihilation approaches, O King, there will be no rain upon the earth for one hundred years. Drought will lead to famine, and the starving populace will literally consume one another. The inhabitants of the earth, bewildered by the force of time, will gradually be destroyed.
FAQs
In Canto 12, Chapter 4, Śukadeva describes that prolonged lack of rain will lead to severe food scarcity, hunger, and societal breakdown, with people gradually perishing under the pressure of time and calamity.
Parīkṣit Mahārāja asked about the nature and effects of Kali-yuga; Śukadeva replies by outlining its symptoms—such as drought and famine—to warn and instruct the king about the age’s degeneration and the urgency of spiritual shelter.
The verse urges sobriety about material dependence and social instability, encouraging one to strengthen dharma, compassion, and spiritual practice—especially bhakti—rather than relying solely on fragile external conditions.