Shloka 13
विन्ध्यवृद्धिनिवारणम् — The Restraint of the Vindhya
Agastya’s Injunction
स्वाध्याय और वषट्त्कार बंद हो गये। यज्ञोत्सव आदि कार्य नष्ट हो गये। कालेयोंके भयसे पीड़ित हुए सम्पूर्ण जगतमें कहीं कोई उत्साह नहीं रह गया था ।। एवं संक्षीयमाणाश्न मानवा मनुजेश्वर । आत्मत्राणपराभीता: प्राद्रवन्त दिशो भयात्,नरेश्वर! इस प्रकार दिन-दिन नष्ट होनेवाले मनुष्य भयभीत हो अपनी रक्षाके लिये चारों दिशाओंमें भाग गये
svādhyāyaś ca vaṣaṭkāraś ca bandhāṃ gatāḥ | yajñotsavādayaḥ karmāṇi naṣṭāni | kāleyabhayapīḍite samaste jagati kvacid api nāsīd utsāhaḥ || evaṃ saṃkṣīyamāṇāś ca mānavā manu-jeśvara | ātmatrāṇaparā bhītāḥ prādravan diśo bhayāt ||
Study of sacred lore and the ritual cry of ‘vaṣaṭ’ fell silent; sacrificial festivals and allied rites were ruined. With the whole world oppressed by fear of the Kāleyas, no spark of courage remained anywhere. Thus, O lord of men, as people dwindled day by day, terrified and intent only on saving their own lives, they fled in fear to all the directions. The passage underscores how adharma and terror do not merely kill bodies—they extinguish learning, worship, and the communal order that sustains dharma.
लोगश उवाच
Educational Q&A
When society is ruled by fear and violence, dharma collapses in visible ways: Vedic study, ritual speech, and communal sacrifices cease. The verse highlights that protecting the conditions for learning and worship is a king’s ethical responsibility; otherwise people become consumed by mere survival.
The world is described as being terrorized by the Kāleyas. As a result, sacred recitation and sacrificial rites stop, festivals are destroyed, morale disappears, and people—diminishing day by day—scatter in panic to the four directions seeking safety.