Shloka 15
परंतु भरतश्रेष्ठ, कलियुग आनेपर अधर्म अपने तीन अंशोंद्वारा सम्पूर्ण लोकोंको आक्रान्त करके स्थित होता है और धर्म केवल एक पादसे मनुष्योंमें प्रतिष्ठित होता है। पाण्डुनन्दन! प्रत्येक युगमें मनुष्योंकी आयु, वीर्य, बुद्धि, बल तथा तेज क्रमश: घटते जाते हैं। युधिष्ठिर अब कलियुगके समयका वर्णन सुनो। ब्राह्मण, क्षत्रिय, वैश्य और शूद्र सभी जातियोंके लोग कपट॒पूर्वक धर्मका आचरण करेंगे और धर्मका जाल बिछाकर दूसरे लोगोंको ठगते रहेंगे। अपनेको पण्डित माननेवाले लोग सत्यका त्याग कर देंगे ।। ११-- १४ || सत्यहान्या ततस्तेषामायुरल्पं भविष्यति । आयुष: प्रक्षयाद् विद्यां न शक्ष्यन्त्युपजीवितुम्,सत्यकी हानि होनेसे उनकी आयु थोड़ी हो जायगी और आयुकी कमी होनेके कारण वे अपने जीवन-निर्वाहके योग्य विद्या प्राप्त नहीं कर सकेंगे
satyahānyā tatasteṣām āyur alpaṁ bhaviṣyati | āyuṣaḥ prakṣayād vidyāṁ na śakṣyanty upajīvitum ||
O best of the Bhāratas! When the Kali age arrives, Adharma, with three of its parts, will overrun and cover all the worlds, and Dharma will stand among human beings on only a single foot. O son of Pāṇḍu, in every age the lifespan, vigor, intelligence, strength, and splendor of men steadily decline. O Yudhiṣṭhira, now hear of the time of Kali: brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas, vaiśyas, and śūdras—people of every varṇa—will practice dharma with deceit, spreading a net of ‘righteousness’ to cheat others. Those who deem themselves learned will abandon truth. When truth is lost, their lives will be short; and because life is cut down, they will not be able to gain the learning by which one sustains one’s livelihood.
मार्कण्डेय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse links moral truthfulness (satya) with human flourishing: when truth collapses, life becomes shorter and people lose the capacity to gain sustaining knowledge, implying that ethical decay produces practical and societal harm.
Mārkaṇḍeya continues his description of Kali-yuga to Yudhiṣṭhira, explaining a causal chain of degeneration: the loss of truth leads to shortened lifespans, and shortened lifespans prevent people from attaining the education and skills needed for stable livelihood.