Shloka 23

कलिस्वरूप-वर्णनम् एवं कालमान-प्रस्तावना

Devanagari script

समानपौरुषं चेतो भावि विप्रेषु वै कलौ क्षीरप्रदानसंबन्धि भावि गोषु च गौरवम्

Transliteration

samānapauruṣaṃ ceto bhāvi vipreṣu vai kalau kṣīrapradānasaṃbandhi bhāvi goṣu ca gauravam

Translation

في عصر كالي ستتجه عقول البراهمة على نحوٍ واحد إلى طلب القدرة والمنفعة الدنيوية؛ وسيكون توقير الأبقار غالبًا بسبب صلتها بإعطاء اللبن (كسلعة)، لا بدافع الاحترام المقدّس.

Word by Word

• समानपौरुषम्: having equal manliness/strength
• समानपौरुषम्: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: समान (प्रातिपदिक) + पौरुष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (समानं पौरुषं यस्य) विशेषणम् (चेतः)

• चेतः: mind, disposition
• चेतः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: चेतस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• भावि: will be, is to be
• भावि: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: भू (धातु) + भाविन् (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; भविष्यदर्थक-विशेषणम् (चेतः)

• विप्रेषु: among brahmins
• विप्रेषु: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विप्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, बहुवचन

• वै: indeed
• वै: Sambandha (Discourse particle/निपात)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वै (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle), निश्चयार्थ/प्रसिद्ध्यर्थ

• कलौ: in the Kali age
• कलौ: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कलि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन

• क्षीरप्रदानसंबन्धि: connected with giving milk
• क्षीरप्रदानसंबन्धि: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: क्षीर (प्रातिपदिक) + प्रदान (प्रातिपदिक) + सम्बन्धिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; तत्पुरुषः (क्षीरस्य प्रदानस्य सम्बन्धि) विशेषणम् (गौरवम्)

• भावि: will be
• भावि: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: भू (धातु) + भाविन् (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; भविष्यदर्थक-विशेषणम् (गौरवम्)

• गोषु: among cows
• गोषु: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गो (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, बहुवचन

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-अव्यय (conjunction)

• गौरवम्: importance, esteem
• गौरवम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गौरव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Signs and social-religious degeneration characteristic of Kali-yuga

Teaching: Ethical

Quality: authoritative

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: In Kali-yuga, dharmic institutions are hollowed out when sacred duties are reduced to worldly utility and gain.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Treat dharma (including go-sevā and respect for brāhmaṇas) as sacred responsibility rather than commodity; examine motives in religious practice.

Vishishtadvaita: Dharma is service to the Lord’s order; reducing sacred beings (like cows) to mere instruments obscures their relation to Nārāyaṇa as His śeṣa (dependents).

Vaishnava Theology

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Characters & Entities

• Brāhmaṇas (Vipras)
• Cows (Gauḥ)

FAQs

What is the significance of reverence for cows in this Vishnu Purana verse?

The verse frames Kali-yuga as an age where even sacred reverence becomes transactional—honor toward cows is tied mainly to milk-supply rather than dharmic sanctity.

How does Sage Parāśara explain moral decline in Kali-yuga here?

He describes a shift in inner disposition (cetas): social groups meant to embody spiritual standards move toward uniform worldly ambition, and sacred symbols are valued primarily for utility.

What is the theological importance of Lord Vishnu in this context?

By mapping yuga-based decline, the Purana underscores the need for anchoring dharma in the Supreme Reality (Vishnu), whose order persists even as human values degrade in Kali-yuga.