Shloka 86
कृतयुगवर्णनम् तथा राजधर्मोपदेशः
Kṛtayuga Description and Instruction on Royal Dharma
तस्मिन्नेकार्णवे घोरे नष्टे स्थावरजड्रमे । नष्टे देवासुरगणे यक्षराक्षसवर्जिते,इस प्रकार चराचर प्राणियों, देवताओं तथा असुर आदिके नष्ट हो जानेपर यक्ष, राक्षस, मनुष्य, हिंसक जीव, वृक्ष तथा अन्तरिक्षसे शून्य उस घोर एकार्णवमय जगतमें मैं अकेला ही इधर-उधर मारा-मारा फिरता हूँ
tasminnekārṇave ghore naṣṭe sthāvarajaḍrame | naṣṭe devāsuragaṇe yakṣarākṣasavarjite ||
Vaiśampāyana said: “In that dreadful single ocean of dissolution—when the immovable and the moving creation had perished, when the hosts of gods and asuras had vanished, and when even yakṣas and rākṣasas were absent—there remained only that terrifying, empty expanse.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the impermanence of all orders of existence—humans, nature, and even divine and demonic hosts—within the larger rhythm of cosmic dissolution (pralaya), inviting reflection on detachment and the limits of worldly power.
The speaker describes a pralaya-like scene: the world has become a single terrifying ocean where all beings—moving and unmoving, including devas and asuras—have disappeared, leaving an empty, desolate expanse.