Shloka 16
Chapter 54
रिपवो जिग्युर् अधुना काल आत्मानुसारिणि । तदा वयं विजेष्यामो यदा कालः प्रदक्षिणः ॥
ripavo jigyur adhunā kāla ātmānusāriṇi / tadā vayaṃ vijeṣyāmo yadā kālaḥ pradakṣiṇaḥ //
Our enemies have won for now, because time follows its own course. But we shall be victorious when time turns favorable to us.
Here the speaker shifts from blaming the opponent to appealing to ‘kāla’—time—as the deciding power in worldly outcomes. Śrīmad Bhāgavatam acknowledges that material events unfold under time’s influence, yet it also teaches that time itself is an energy of the Supreme Lord. When one is antagonistic to Kṛṣṇa, speaking of “time becoming favorable” can become a self-deceiving hope: the heart remains untransformed while one waits for circumstances to change. In contrast, devotees see time as Kṛṣṇa’s arrangement meant to purify and guide them toward surrender. The verse thus captures a common worldly mentality—postponing introspection by saying, “Now is not our time.” In the narrative context, it reveals Rukmī’s refusal to accept the deeper reason for his setback: opposing the Lord and His devotees. The Bhāgavatam’s implicit instruction is to become favorable to Kṛṣṇa; then time, which is always under Him, becomes auspicious for spiritual progress.
FAQs
This verse shows time as the force governing worldly reversals; in the Bhāgavatam, kāla ultimately operates under the Supreme Lord’s control.
He comforts himself after defeat by attributing the outcome to an unfavorable phase of time, implying future revenge when circumstances shift.
Instead of waiting for luck to change, a devotee uses every phase of time for sādhana and surrender, trusting Kṛṣṇa’s arrangement as purifying and purposeful.