Markandeya Purana — Adhyaya 43, Shloka 40
Adhyaya 43 — Portents of Death (Ariṣṭa-lakṣaṇas) and the Yogin’s Response; Alarka Renounces Kingship
ज्ञात्वा कालञ्च तं सम्यगभयस्थानमाश्रितः ।
युञ्जीत योगी कालोऽसौ यथा नास्याफलो भवेत् ॥
jñātvā kālañ ca taṃ samyag abhayasthānam āśritaḥ / yuñjīta yogī kālo 'sau yathā nāsyāphalo bhavet
Having correctly known that time, taking refuge in the state of fearlessness, the yogin should engage in yoga—so that this time does not become fruitless for him.
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FAQs
When confronted with mortality or crisis, the correct response is not despair but intensified sādhana grounded in fearlessness; time becomes meaningful when used for inner realization.
It is a mokṣa-oriented ethical injunction within narrative, not a lakṣaṇa section; it exemplifies the Purāṇic function of spiritual instruction.
‘Abhayasthāna’ indicates stabilization in the witnessing Self; from that center, even ‘kāla’ (death/time) is transmuted into a catalyst for liberation.