Shloka 84
इन्द्रद्युम्नोपाख्यानम्
Indradyumna Upākhyāna: On Kīrti, Smṛti, and Restoration
न लप्स्यन्ते निवासं च निरस्ता: पथि शेरते । युगान्तकाल आनेपर सब ओर आग भी जल उठेगी। उस समय पथिकोंको माँगनेपर कहीं अन्न, जल या ठहरनेके लिये स्थान नहीं मिलेगा। वे सब ओरसे कोरा जवाब पाकर निराश हो सड़कोंपर ही सो रहेंगे ।। निर्घातवायसा नागा: शकुना: समृगद्धिजा:
na lapsyante nivāsaṃ ca nirastāḥ pathi śerate | nighātavāyasā nāgāḥ śakunāḥ samṛgaddhijāḥ ||
Mārkaṇḍeya said: “They will not obtain even a place to stay; turned away everywhere, they will lie down on the road. In that end-of-the-age-like time, when fire seems to rise on all sides, travelers who beg for food, water, or shelter will receive nothing—only refusal—and, disappointed, will sleep out in the open. Even the natural world will appear ominous: crows will cry harshly, serpents will be agitated, and birds will mingle fearlessly with beasts.”
मार्कण्डेय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse warns that when dharma declines, basic human duties—especially hospitality and compassion toward those in need—collapse. The ethical emphasis is on atithi-dharma: refusing food, water, and shelter to the vulnerable is a sign of societal and moral disintegration.
Mārkaṇḍeya describes a grim, yuga-ending-like condition: travelers are turned away everywhere and must sleep on the road. Alongside human cruelty and scarcity, nature itself appears disturbed through ominous signs such as harsh-calling crows and unsettling animal behavior.