Shloka 50
ब्रह्मदत्तने कहा--पूजनी! काल ही समस्त कार्य करता है तथा कालके ही प्रभावसे भाँति-भाँतिकी क्रियाएँ आरम्भ होती हैं। इसमें कौन किसका अपराध करता है? ।। तुल्यं चोभे प्रवर्तेते मरणं जन्म चैव ह | कार्यते चैव कालेन ततन्निमित्तं न जीवति,जन्म और मृत्यु--ये दोनों क्रियाएँ समानरूपसे चलती रहती हैं। और काल ही इन्हें कराता है। इसीलिये प्राणी जीवित नहीं रह पाता
brahmadatta uvāca—pūjanīye! kāla eva samastāni kāryāṇi karoti, kālasyaiva prabhāvena nānāvidhāḥ kriyāḥ pravartante. atra kaḥ kasya aparādhyati? tulyam cobhe pravartete maraṇaṁ janma caiva ha; kālenaiva ca kāryete, tadan-nimittaṁ na jīvati.
Brahmadatta said: “Venerable lady, Time alone accomplishes all actions, and under the influence of Time the many kinds of activities begin. In such a case, who can be said to offend against whom? Birth and death proceed alike, side by side; Time itself brings them about. Therefore a living being cannot remain alive (indefinitely), for life is not sustained against Time’s ordinance.”
ब्रह्मदत्त उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches a Kāla-centered view of causality: Time is the ultimate agent behind events, including birth and death. Because all processes unfold under Time’s power, personal blame and offense are relativized—ethical judgment is tempered by the recognition of an overarching cosmic order.
Brahmadatta addresses a revered woman and argues that the unfolding of actions and the inevitability of birth and death are driven by Kāla. He uses this to question the basis for assigning personal culpability, emphasizing the inevitability of mortality under Time’s governance.