Shloka 8
कलिस्वरूप-वर्णनम् एवं कालमान-प्रस्तावना
कलेः स्वरूपं भगवन् विस्तराद् वक्तुम् अर्हसि धर्मश् चतुष्पाद् भगवन् यस्मिन् विप्लवम् ऋच्छति
kaleḥ svarūpaṃ bhagavan vistarād vaktum arhasi dharmaś catuṣpād bhagavan yasmin viplavam ṛcchati
হে ভগৱান, কলিযুগৰ স্বৰূপ বিস্তাৰে ক’বলৈ অনুগ্ৰহ কৰক; যি যুগত, হে প্ৰভু, চতুষ্পদ ধৰ্মো বিপ্লৱত পৰি বিনাশপ্ৰায় হয়।
Maitreya (addressing Sage Parāśara)
Speaker: Maitreya
Topic: Request for a detailed description of Kali-yuga’s nature and the upheaval of four-footed Dharma
Teaching: Ethical
Quality: urgent and inquisitive
Concept: Kali-yuga is characterized by the destabilization of Dharma itself, prompting vigilant discernment of right conduct.
Vedantic Theme: Dharma
Application: Treat moral confusion as a cue to deepen self-discipline, truthful speech, and steady devotional practice rather than conforming to social decay.
Vishishtadvaita: Dharma is upheld as a real order within the Lord’s real world (not illusory), so its collapse has ethical gravity while still remaining under divine governance.
FAQs
This verse frames Kali-yuga as a definable condition of the world—marked by the disturbance of dharma—inviting a systematic description of its characteristics rather than a vague moral complaint.
Maitreya’s question sets up Parāśara’s ensuing explanation: Kali is the age in which dharma, described as ‘four-footed’ (complete), becomes destabilized—indicating a progressive loss of moral and ritual foundations.
Even when dharma is overturned in Kali, the Vishnu Purana’s larger framework presents cosmic order as ultimately governed by the Supreme Lord; the inquiry into decline implicitly points to Vishnu as the transcendent ground and restorer of dharma.