Shloka 80
सूर्यरथ-कालचक्र-आयनविभागः, संध्योपासनम्, देवयान-पितृयानम्, विष्णुपद-गङ्गावतरणम्
अहोरात्रार्धमासौ तु कलाः काष्ठाः क्षणास् तथा पौर्णमासी तथा ज्ञेया अमावास्या तथैव च सिनीवाली कुहूश् चैव राका चानुमतिस् तथा
ahorātrārdhamāsau tu kalāḥ kāṣṭhāḥ kṣaṇās tathā paurṇamāsī tathā jñeyā amāvāsyā tathaiva ca sinīvālī kuhūś caiva rākā cānumatis tathā
Thus are reckoned the measures of time—day and night, the half-month, and the smaller divisions such as kalā, kāṣṭhā, and kṣaṇa; likewise are understood the lunar observances: Paurṇamāsī (Full Moon), Amāvāsyā (New Moon), and the phases Sinīvālī, Kuhū, Rākā, and Anumati.
Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)
Speaker: Parasara
Topic: Divisions of time (kāla-vibhāga): day/night, half-month, smaller units, and lunar observance days/phases
Teaching: Cosmological
Quality: revealing
Concept: Time is articulated through nested measures and lunar markers (tithi/phase-names), making dharma practicable through precise reckoning.
Vedantic Theme: Dharma
Application: Structure life with mindful cycles—daily practice, fortnightly reflection, and periodic observances—to align intention with steady discipline.
Vishishtadvaita: Kāla functions as a real mode (prakāra) within the Lord’s ordered manifestation; temporal structure supports embodied souls’ progress in dharma and bhakti.
Vishnu Form: Narayana (cosmic)
Bhakti Type: Shanta (peaceful)
FAQs
This verse treats them as formal measures within sacred time—key markers of the Moon’s cycle used to structure ritual, calendrical reckoning, and the broader cosmic order (kāla).
He lists time from larger spans (day-night, half-month) down to finer units (kalā, kāṣṭhā, kṣaṇa), then links that reckoning to lunar phases and observances, showing time as an ordered system rather than a random flow.
Even when Vishnu is not named directly, the Vishnu Purana frames kāla (time) and cosmic regularity as operating under the Supreme Reality’s sovereignty—time becomes a manifestation of divine order sustaining the universe.