Shloka 35

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

Devanagari script

सस्यचौरा भविष्यन्ति दृढचैलाभिलाषिणः चौराश्चोरस्वहर्तारो हर्तुर्हर्ता तथापरः

Transliteration

sasyacaurā bhaviṣyanti dṛḍhacailābhilāṣiṇaḥ caurāścorasvahartāro harturhartā tathāparaḥ

Translation

They will become thieves of grain, craving thick and costly garments. Thieves will steal from thieves; one robber will rob another, and yet another will plunder the plunderer—thus the bond of pāśa will multiply in the age of decline, as the pashu (bound soul) forgets the ordinance of Pati, the Lord.

Word by Word

• sasya-caurāḥ: thieves of grain/harvest

• bhaviṣyanti: will become/will arise

• dṛḍha: stout/strong

• caila: garments/cloth

• abhilāṣiṇaḥ: desirous/craving

• caurāḥ: thieves

• cora-sva: a thief's property

• hartāraḥ: stealers/takers

• hartuḥ: of the stealer/of one who steals

• hartā: the stealer/robber

• tathā: likewise

• aparaḥ: another (one).

Speaker

Suta Goswami

Characters & Entities

• Shiva

FAQs

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

It frames Kali-yuga as an age where greed and mutual predation intensify; Linga-worship is implied as a remedial return to Pati (Shiva), reducing pāśa through devotion, restraint, and dharmic living.

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

By contrast: when souls (pashus) lose alignment with Pati, disorder spreads. Shiva-tattva stands as the steady sovereign principle of order and liberation, against which the instability of desire-driven life is revealed.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

Not a specific rite, but the ethical foundation required for Shiva-puja and Pashupata discipline—sense-restraint, non-stealing (asteya), and curbing craving—so the pashu can loosen pāśa and turn toward Pati.