Shloka 47

कलिस्वरूप-वर्णनम् एवं कालमान-प्रस्तावना

Devanagari script

यदा यदा न यज्ञानाम् ईश्वरः पुरुषोत्तमः इज्यते पुरुषैर् यज्ञैस् तदा ज्ञेयं कलेर् बलम्

Transliteration

yadā yadā na yajñānām īśvaraḥ puruṣottamaḥ ijyate puruṣair yajñais tadā jñeyaṃ kaler balam

Translation

Whenever Puruṣottama—the Lord of all sacrifices—is no longer worshipped by people through the rites of yajña, then one should know that the strength and sway of the Kali age are rising.

Word by Word

• यदा: when
• यदा: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यदा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; कालवाचक (relative temporal adverb)

• यदा: whenever
• यदा: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यदा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; पुनरुक्ति (emphatic repetition)

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

• यज्ञानाम्: of sacrifices
• यज्ञानाम्: Sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यज्ञ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), बहुवचन

• ईश्वरः: the Lord
• ईश्वरः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ईश्वर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• पुरुषोत्तमः: the Supreme Person
• पुरुषोत्तमः: Karta (Apposition/कर्ता-समानााधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुरुष + उत्तम (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; (पुरुषेषु उत्तमः)

• इज्यते: is worshipped
• इज्यते: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: यज् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; आत्मनेपद; कर्मणि प्रयोग (passive)

• पुरुषैः: by men
• पुरुषैः: Karana (Agent in passive/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुरुष (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), बहुवचन

• यज्ञैः: with sacrifices
• यज्ञैः: Karana (Instrument/means/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यज्ञ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), बहुवचन

• तदा: then
• तदा: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तदा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; तदर्थक कालवाचक (correlative temporal adverb)

• ज्ञेयम्: is to be known
• ज्ञेयम्: Visheshana (Predicate adjective/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ज्ञा (धातु) + य (कृत्) (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; कृत्य (gerundive: 'to be known/recognized')

• कलेः: of Kali
• कलेः: Sambandha (Genitive relation/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कलि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन

• बलम्: strength, power
• बलम्: Karma (Predicate complement/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: बल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Kali’s strength measured by the decline of worship of Puruṣottama as yajña-īśvara

Teaching: Devotional

Quality: authoritative

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: When Puruṣottama, the Lord of sacrifice, is not worshipped through yajña, Kali’s power is to be known as ascendant.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: In Kali-yuga, preserve the spirit of yajña through nāma-saṅkīrtana, daily offerings, and service (seva) dedicated to the Supreme.

Vishishtadvaita: Identifies the Supreme Person as yajña-īśvara, aligning ritual and devotion to a personal Brahman who receives worship and sustains the cosmos.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman

Bhakti Type: Dasya

Characters & Entities

• Vishnu
• Yajña (sacrifice)

FAQs

What is the significance of Kali Yuga’s ‘strength’ in the Vishnu Purana?

In this verse, Kali’s power is recognized by a concrete symptom: people cease to worship the Supreme Lord of yajña through rightful sacrificial observances, signaling dharma’s decline.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the decline of dharma across the yugas?

Parāśara points to practice-based markers—when devotion and Vedic duty (here, yajña offered to the Lord) diminish in society, it indicates the yuga’s downward turn, especially the dominance of Kali.

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

Vishnu is presented as Puruṣottama and the Lord of all sacrifices, implying that yajña is ultimately meant for Him; when He is not honored, cosmic and moral order weakens—an explicitly Vaishnava framing of yuga-dharma.