Shloka 20

Adhyaya 40: Kali-yuga Lakshana, Yuga-sandhyamsha, and the Re-emergence of Dharma

Devanagari script

निन्दन्ति वेदविद्यां च द्विजाः कर्माणि वै कलौ कलौ देवो महादेवः शङ्करो नीललोहितः

Transliteration

nindanti vedavidyāṃ ca dvijāḥ karmāṇi vai kalau kalau devo mahādevaḥ śaṅkaro nīlalohitaḥ

Translation

Im Kali-Zeitalter schmähen selbst die Dvija, die Zweimalgeborenen, das vedische Wissen und die vorgeschriebenen Riten. Doch gerade in Kali ist der Gott selbst Mahādeva—Śaṅkara, Nīlalohita, der Blau‑und‑Rotfarbene Herr—der einzige Pati, sichere Zuflucht der gebundenen paśu im Verfall des Dharma.

Word by Word

• निन्दन्ति: they criticize/condemn

• वेदविद्याम्: Vedic knowledge/sacred learning

• च: and

• द्विजाः: the twice-born (Brahmins and other initiated varṇas)

• कर्माणि: ritual actions/rites

• वै: indeed

• कलौ: in Kali (Kali-yuga)

• कलौ: in Kali (emphatic repetition)

• देवः: the God

• महादेवः: Mahādeva (the Great God, Shiva)

• शङ्करः: Śaṅkara (beneficent Shiva)

• नीललोहितः: Nīlalohita (the blue-and-red/blue-throated and ruddy-hued form of Shiva)

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Characters & Entities

• Shiva
• Mahadeva
• Shankara
• Nilalohita
• Dvijas

FAQs

What is the importance of this verse in the context of Linga worship?

It frames Kali-yuga as a time when Vedic learning and rites are neglected, so devotion to Mahadeva—commonly centered on Linga-puja—becomes the direct and reliable means to approach the Pati beyond failing social religiosity.

How does this verse describe the nature of Shiva (Shiva-tattva)?

Shiva is presented as Mahadeva and Shankara, the ever-present Lord in Kali who remains the supreme Pati: unchanged by the yuga’s decline, capable of granting grace that loosens pāśa (bondage) upon the paśu (soul).

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

The verse implicitly redirects practice from mere external karma to Shiva-centered upāsanā—especially Linga worship and Pashupata-oriented surrender to Mahadeva as the principal discipline in Kali-yuga.