Shloka 17

कामतृष्णावैराग्योपदेशः तथा राज्यविभागः

Teaching on Desire & Renunciation; Delegation of Kingdoms

Devanagari script

जीर्यन्ति जीर्यतः केशा दन्ता जीर्यन्ति जीर्यतः धनाशा जीविताशा च जीर्यतो ऽपि न जीर्यतः

Transliteration

jīryanti jīryataḥ keśā dantā jīryanti jīryataḥ dhanāśā jīvitāśā ca jīryato 'pi na jīryataḥ

Translation

Time wears all things away: hair turns grey and teeth decay. Yet even as the body ages, the thirst for wealth and the hope of more life do not grow old at all.

Word by Word

• जीर्यन्ति: they decay/age
• जीर्यन्ति: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: जॄ (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन (Plural), परस्मैपद; धातु: जॄ/जीर् (to decay)

• जीर्यतः: (the two) decay/age
• जीर्यतः: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: जॄ (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), द्विवचन (Dual), परस्मैपद

• केशाः: hairs
• केशाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: केश (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), बहुवचन (Plural)

• दन्ताः: teeth
• दन्ताः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: दन्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), बहुवचन (Plural)

• जीर्यन्ति: they decay/age
• जीर्यन्ति: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: जॄ (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), बहुवचन (Plural), परस्मैपद

• जीर्यतः: (the two) decay/age
• जीर्यतः: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: जॄ (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), द्विवचन (Dual), परस्मैपद

• धनाशाः: desires for wealth
• धनाशाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धन (प्रातिपदिक) + आशा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), बहुवचन (Plural); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (genitive determinative): धनस्य आशा

• जीविताशाः: desires for life (longing to live)
• जीविताशाः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जीवित (प्रातिपदिक) + आशा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), बहुवचन (Plural); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष: जीवितस्य आशा

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्यय (conjunction)

• जीर्यतः: (the two) decay/age
• जीर्यतः: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: जॄ (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), द्विवचन (Dual), परस्मैपद

• अपि: even/also
• अपि: Sambandha (Particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (particle), अर्थ: even/also

• न: not
• न: Pratishedha (Negation/निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-अव्यय (negation particle)

• जीर्यतः: (the two) decay/age
• जीर्यतः: Kriya (Verb/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: जॄ (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), द्विवचन (Dual), परस्मैपद

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Bodily decay is inevitable, yet worldly craving (wealth and prolonged life) persists unless checked by discernment.

Vedantic Theme: Moksha

Application: Use daily reflection on impermanence to weaken compulsive acquisition and fear-driven attachment to longevity.

Vishishtadvaita: Dispassion is presented as preparatory (sādhana) for turning the mind toward the Supreme Brahman (Vishnu) rather than transient body-based identity.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman

Bhakti Type: Shanta

FAQs

What is the significance of Kāla (Time) in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse highlights Kāla as the inescapable power that dissolves bodily strength and beauty, urging the listener to see worldly life as impermanent and to seek the higher, enduring reality.

How does Sage Parāśara explain human attachment in this context?

Parāśara contrasts physical aging with mental craving: the body clearly declines, but desires—especially for wealth and continued life—persist, showing why discernment and detachment are necessary.

What is the theological importance of Lord Vishnu in this context?

By exposing the unreliability of the perishable body and its desires, the teaching implicitly points toward Vishnu as the stable Supreme Reality beyond time-driven decay.