Shloka 6

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

Devanagari script

उत्सीदन्ति नराश्चैव क्षत्रियाश् च विशः क्रमात् शूद्राणां मन्त्रयोगेन संबन्धो ब्राह्मणैः सह

Transliteration

utsīdanti narāścaiva kṣatriyāś ca viśaḥ kramāt śūdrāṇāṃ mantrayogena saṃbandho brāhmaṇaiḥ saha

Translation

In due course, people decline—kṣatriyas and vaiśyas as well—step by step. And by the misapplied use of mantras, śūdras come to be connected with brāhmaṇas, bringing confusion to the boundaries of the social order.

Word by Word

• ut-sīdanti: fall into decline, sink down

• narāḥ: people, men

• ca eva: and indeed

• kṣatriyāḥ: the warrior-rulers

• ca: and

• viśaḥ: the vaiśyas (commoners/merchant-agricultural class)

• kramāt: gradually, in sequence

• śūdrāṇām: of the śūdras

• mantra-yogena: by the joining/application of mantras (mantra-practice)

• saṁbandhaḥ: association, connection

• brāhmaṇaiḥ saha: together with brāhmaṇas

Speaker

Suta Goswami (narrating the Purana to the sages at Naimisharanya; contextual description of decline in dharma)

FAQs

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

It frames a Kali-yuga backdrop where dharma weakens and mantra-discipline becomes confused—implying that Linga-puja requires proper niyama (restraint), right transmission, and purity of practice to remain spiritually efficacious.

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

Indirectly: when social and ritual order collapses, refuge is sought in Pati (Shiva) as the stabilizing principle beyond decay; Shiva-tattva remains pure while pashus (souls) become further entangled through disorder and misapplied rites.

What ritualistic or Yogic practice is highlighted here?

Mantra-yoga (mantra application/discipline) is highlighted—warning that mantra without proper adhikara (qualification), guidance, and observance can lead to dharmic confusion rather than liberation.