Shloka 51
कलियुग-प्रवृत्तिः, सप्तर्षि-गणना, धरणीगीताः, च वंश-समाप्तिः
Kali-yuga onset, Saptarṣi reckoning, Dharaṇī-gītā, and closure of the dynastic account
उत्सृज्य पूर्वजा याता यां नादाय गतः पिता तां ममेति विमूढत्वाज् जेतुम् इच्छन्ति पार्थिवाः
utsṛjya pūrvajā yātā yāṃ nādāya gataḥ pitā tāṃ mameti vimūḍhatvāj jetum icchanti pārthivāḥ
The realm that the ancestors abandoned and departed, and that the father left behind without taking with him—kings, in the delusion of “this is mine,” still long to conquer.
Sage Parāśara (in discourse to Maitreya)
Speaker: Parasara
Topic: Why worldly sovereignty and conquest are ultimately futile in light of death and impermanence.
Teaching: Ethical
Quality: revealing
Concept: Earthly dominion is abandoned by all at death; therefore the craving to ‘conquer’ it as ‘mine’ is delusion.
Vedantic Theme: Dharma
Application: Contemplate mortality to soften possessiveness and redirect ambition toward dharma and liberation.
Vishishtadvaita: Detachment prepares the jīva to recognize true ownership as belonging to the Supreme Lord, not the finite ego.
Dharma Exemplar: Vairagya (detachment from possessiveness)
FAQs
It highlights mamakāra—deluded ownership—showing that even kingdoms are abandoned at death, so claiming them as ‘mine’ is spiritually ignorant.
By pointing to lineage itself: ancestors and fathers depart leaving everything behind, yet later kings repeat the same grasping impulse to conquer what cannot truly be possessed.
The verse supports a Vishnu-centered worldview where true sovereignty belongs to the Supreme Reality; worldly rule is temporary, and wisdom lies in aligning with dharma rather than egoic possession.