Shloka 20
देव–विष्णु–संवादः । कालेयगणस्य समुद्राश्रयः । अगस्त्योपसर्पणम्
Devas and Viṣṇu on the Kāleyas; Approach to Agastya
तेषां तु तत्र क्रमकालयोगाद् घोरा मतिकश्रिन्तयतां बभूव । ये सन्ति विद्यातपसोपपतन्ना- स्तेषां विनाश: प्रथम तु कार्य:,वहाँ क्रमश: दीर्घकालतक उपायचिन्तनमें लगे हुए उन असुरोंने यह घोर निश्चय किया कि जो लोग विद्वान् और तपस्वी हों, सबसे पहले उन्हींका विनाश करना चाहिये। सम्पूर्ण लोग तपसे ही टिके हुए हैं। अतः तुम सब लोग तपस्याके विनाशके लिये शीघ्रतापूर्वक कार्य करो। भूमण्डलमें जो कोई भी तपस्वी, धर्मज्ञ एवं उन्हें जानने-माननेवाले लोग हों, उन सबका तुरंत वध कर डालो। उनके नष्ट होनेपर सारा जगत् नष्ट हो जायगा। इस प्रकार बुद्धि और विचारसे हीन वे समस्त दैत्य संसारके विनाशकी बात सोचकर अत्यन्त हर्षका अनुभव करने लगे। उत्ताल तरंगोंसे भरे हुए वरुणके निवासस्थान रत्नाकर समुद्ररूप दुर्गका आश्रय लेकर वे उसमें निर्भय होकर रहने लगे
teṣāṃ tu tatra kramakālayogād ghorā matiḥ kṛśa-cintayatāṃ babhūva | ye santi vidyā-tapasopapannās teṣāṃ vināśaḥ prathamaṃ tu kāryaḥ ||
In that place, as time passed and their plotting continued step by step, a dreadful resolve arose in those who were brooding over schemes: “Those who possess learning and ascetic power must be destroyed first.” The ethical inversion is stark—rather than honoring wisdom and tapas as supports of the world, they identify them as obstacles to their domination and therefore make the ruin of the virtuous their first objective.
लोगश उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights a dharmic principle by contrast: learning (vidyā) and ascetic discipline (tapas) uphold order, so targeting the wise and the ascetics is portrayed as a hallmark of adharma—an attack on the very supports of the world.
Over time, the antagonistic beings (asuras/daityas in the surrounding context) arrive at a grim strategy: they decide that their first task is to eliminate those endowed with knowledge and tapas, seeing them as the primary impediment to their aims.