Shloka 30

कलिस्वरूप-वर्णनम् एवं कालमान-प्रस्तावना

Devanagari script

स्वपोषणपराः क्षुद्रा देहसंस्कारवर्जिताः परुषानृतभाषिण्यो भविष्यन्ति कलौ स्त्रियः

Transliteration

svapoṣaṇaparāḥ kṣudrā dehasaṃskāravarjitāḥ paruṣānṛtabhāṣiṇyo bhaviṣyanti kalau striyaḥ

Translation

In the age of Kali, women will be intent chiefly on self-maintenance; narrow in outlook, bereft of the disciplines that refine body and conduct; and they will speak with harshness and untruth.

Word by Word

• स्व-पोषण-पराः: devoted to their own maintenance
• स्व-पोषण-पराः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स्व (प्रातिपदिक/सर्वनाम) + पोषण (प्रातिपदिक) + पर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (स्वस्य पोषणं तत्र पराः)

• क्षुद्राः: petty, mean
• क्षुद्राः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: क्षुद्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; विशेषणम्

• देह-संस्कार-वर्जिताः: devoid of bodily refinements/rites
• देह-संस्कार-वर्जिताः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: देह (प्रातिपदिक) + संस्कार (प्रातिपदिक) + वर्जित (प्रातिपदिक; √वृज्/वर्ज्-धातोः क्त)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास (देहस्य संस्कारः तेन वर्जिताः)

• परुष-अनृत-भाषिण्यः: speaking harshly and falsely
• परुष-अनृत-भाषिण्यः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: परुष (प्रातिपदिक) + अनृत (प्रातिपदिक) + भाषिन् (प्रातिपदिक; √भाष्-धातोः णिनि)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; तत्पुरुष-समास; विशेषणम्

• भविष्यन्ति: will be
• भविष्यन्ति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: लृट्-लकार, प्रथम-पुरुष, बहुवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• कलौ: in Kali (age)
• कलौ: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कलि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th/Locative), एकवचन

• स्त्रियः: women
• स्त्रियः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्त्री (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), बहुवचन

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Kali-yuga moral decline—loss of saṃskāra and truthfulness in speech

Teaching: Ethical

Quality: didactic

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: With the eclipse of saṃskāra (refining disciplines), speech becomes harsh and untrue and life contracts into mere self-preservation.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Rebuild daily saṃskāras—cleanliness, truthful speech, and devotional routine (nitya-karma, nāma-japa)—to counter Kali’s coarsening.

Vishishtadvaita: Saṃskāra and satya are modes of offering the body-mind as the Lord’s śeṣa (belonging), aligning conduct with divine indwelling governance.

FAQs

What is the significance of Kali-yuga characteristics in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse functions as a Kali-lakṣaṇa: it marks the breakdown of dharma through loss of truthful speech, refinement (saṁskāra), and ethical restraint—symptoms of a wider civilizational decline described in Book 6.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the decline of conduct in Kali-yuga?

Parāśara presents Kali as an age where inner virtues and disciplined living weaken; the verse highlights speech ethics (truth vs. falsehood) and the fading of saṁskāra as visible indicators of that decline.

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

Even while describing Kali’s disorder, the Vishnu Purana frames time and yugas as governed by the Supreme Lord Vishnu; the decline underscores the need to re-anchor life in dharma and devotion to the sustaining Sovereign of the cosmos.