Shloka 16
Īśvara-gītā: Brahman as All-Pervading—Kāla, Prakṛti–Puruṣa, Tattva-Evolution, and Mokṣa
कालः सृजति भूतानि कालः संहरति प्रजाः / सर्वे कालस्य वशगा न कालः कस्यचिद् वशे
kālaḥ sṛjati bhūtāni kālaḥ saṃharati prajāḥ / sarve kālasya vaśagā na kālaḥ kasyacid vaśe
الزمنُ (كالا) يخلق الكائنات، والزمنُ نفسه يَقبِض الخلائق. الجميعُ تحت سلطان الزمن؛ أمّا الزمنُ فلا سلطانَ لأحدٍ عليه.
Lord Kūrma (Vishnu) instructing sages (Kurma Purana teaching context)
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
FAQs
It highlights that all embodied beings are governed by change (kāla), implying the seeker should discern the changeless Self beyond birth and death; Time rules the manifest, while the Self is sought as that which is not overpowered by worldly transformations.
The verse supports vairāgya (dispassion) and steady contemplation: since Time creates and dissolves all conditions, the yogin practices detachment, endurance (titikṣā), and one-pointed meditation on Īśvara/Atman rather than transient states—an orientation consistent with Kurma Purana’s yoga-dharma and later Ishvara-Gita style teachings.
By presenting Kāla as the supreme governing principle within cosmic order, it aligns with the Purana’s non-sectarian synthesis: the same ultimate Lord—revered as Hari or Hara—presides over creation and dissolution through Time, emphasizing unity of divine sovereignty rather than rivalry.