Shloka 22
तानत्ति पुरुष: सर्वान् पश्य कालो यथागतः । प्राणस्यान्नमिदं सर्व जड़मं स्थावरं च यत्,परंतु इन सबको मनुष्य मारकर खा जाता है। देखो, कैसा काल आ गया है? यह सम्पूर्ण चराचर जगत् प्राणका अन्न है
tān atti puruṣaḥ sarvān paśya kālo yathāgataḥ | prāṇasyānnam idaṃ sarvaṃ jaḍaṃ sthāvaraṃ ca yat |
Arjuna said: “A man devours them all—see how such a time has come upon us. For the living being, this entire world becomes food: whatever is inert and whatever is immobile. Such is the order of time, where life sustains itself by consuming life and matter.”
अजुन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the moral and existential tension that life is sustained through consumption: under the force of Kāla (Time), beings live by taking other beings or matter as ‘food’. It invites reflection on necessity, restraint, and the inevitability of change and destruction within worldly existence.
Arjuna, speaking in a reflective tone, points out the harsh reality that humans consume other beings and even what is ‘inert’ or ‘immobile’. He frames this as a manifestation of Kāla—suggesting that the prevailing condition of the world compels such acts, prompting ethical contemplation rather than simple approval.