Shloka 127
The Tārakāmaya War: Divine Mustering, Māyā Countermeasures, Aurva Fire, and Viṣṇu’s Slaying of Kālanemi
प्रवर्तयस्यहोरात्रात्कालं संमोहयन्जगत् । लोकच्छायामयं लक्ष्म तवांकः शशविग्रहः
pravartayasyahorātrātkālaṃ saṃmohayanjagat | lokacchāyāmayaṃ lakṣma tavāṃkaḥ śaśavigrahaḥ
Du setzt die Zeit durch Tag und Nacht in Gang und verwirrst die Welt. O glückverheißendes Zeichen, dein Sinnbild ist der Schatten der Welt, der im Mond die Gestalt eines Hasen annimmt.
Unspecified (context not provided in the input excerpt)
Concept: Time (kāla) moves through day and night and veils reality, producing worldly delusion; even the moon’s emblem is a play of shadow and perception.
Application: Notice how routines (day/night cycles) condition the mind; practice remembrance and disciplined devotion to see beyond ‘shadow-forms’ of perception.
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: shanta
Type: celestial_realm
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A cosmic wheel of time turns: half the sky glows with dawn while the other half sinks into night, as if day and night are two horses pulling a single chariot. In the center, the full moon shines with the subtle silhouette of a hare, suggesting the world itself as a shadow-play within luminous consciousness.","primary_figures":["Soma (Moon-deity)","personified Kāla (Time, symbolic)"],"setting":"Celestial panorama with a circular mandala of day-night; stars arranged as a zodiacal ring; the moon central with hare-mark.","lighting_mood":"divine radiance","color_palette":["moonstone white","midnight blue","dawn gold","smoky violet","opal teal"],"tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting style: central full moon with a clearly rendered hare emblem, surrounded by a gold-leaf kāla-chakra mandala; day and night as two semicircles with sun motifs and star motifs; Soma enthroned with ornate jewelry, rich reds/greens, embossed gold patterns emphasizing the turning of ahorātra.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari miniature style: delicate circular composition of twilight gradients; the moon with a soft hare silhouette, fine star-dots, gentle clouds; Soma painted with refined features and minimal ornamentation, poetic emphasis on chāyā (shadow) and luminous calm.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural style: bold outlines; a large moon-disc with hare motif; stylized sun and moon chariot elements around; saturated pigments (red/yellow/green) balanced by cool whites; temple-wall symmetry conveying cosmic order and māyā’s veil.","pichwai_prompt":"Pichwai cloth painting style: moon mandala with lotus-petal border, hare motif at center; intricate floral and vine patterns; deep blue background with gold highlights; surrounding motifs of sun rays and star clusters in rhythmic repetition, devotional textile richness."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"dramatic","suggested_raga":"Bhairavi","pace":"moderate-narrative","voice_tone":"authoritative","sound_elements":["conch shell","temple bells","soft drone (tanpura)","wind through high clouds","measured silence"]}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: प्रवर्तयस्यहोरात्रात् → प्रवर्तयसि अहोरात्रात्; संमोहयन्जगत् → संमोहयन् जगत्; तवांकः → तव अङ्कः.
FAQs
It portrays time as something propelled by the cycle of day and night, and as a force that can “bewilder” living beings—i.e., it shapes perception and worldly experience.
It alludes to the traditional image of a hare seen in the moon’s markings (the “hare in the moon”), using it as a symbol of appearance/shadow (chāyā)—suggesting the world’s phenomena can be like reflections or silhouettes.
Since time and its cycles can delude the mind, the implied counsel is to cultivate discernment (viveka) and not be fully carried away by changing appearances and temporal pressures.