Shloka 53

कलिस्वरूप-वर्णनम् एवं कालमान-प्रस्तावना

Devanagari script

अणुप्रायाणि धान्यानि आजप्रायं तथा पयः भविष्यति कलौ प्राप्ते उशीरं चानुलेपनम्

Transliteration

aṇuprāyāṇi dhānyāni ājaprāyaṃ tathā payaḥ bhaviṣyati kalau prāpte uśīraṃ cānulepanam

Translation

When the age of Kali has fully arrived, grains will become scant and meagre; milk, too, will be mostly of the goat. Even for anointing the body, people will resort to substitutes—using uśīra (vetiver) as a paste.

Word by Word

• अणुप्रायाणि: mostly small (in size)
• अणुप्रायाणि: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अणु + प्राय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन; विशेषण (धान्यानि) — ‘अणु-प्राय’ = mostly small

• धान्यानि: grains/cereals
• धान्यानि: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: धान्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, बहुवचन

• आजप्रायम्: mostly (like) goat’s
• आजप्रायम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: आज + प्राय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषण (पयः) — ‘आजा-प्राय’ = mostly (like) goat’s

• तथा: likewise
• तथा: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: क्रियाविशेषण-अव्यय (likewise/also)

• पयः: milk
• पयः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पयस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• भविष्यति: will be
• भविष्यति: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: लृट्-लकार (Simple Future), प्रथम-पुरुष, एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• कलौ: in the Kali (age)
• कलौ: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कलि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; युगे (in the age)

• प्राप्ते: when (it) has come/arrived
• प्राप्ते: Adhikarana (Condition/अधिकरण)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र + आप् (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past participle) सप्तमी-एकवचन, पुंलिङ्ग/नपुंसकलिङ्ग; सति-सप्तमी—‘कलौ प्राप्ते’ = when Kali has arrived

• उशीरम्: uśīra (vetiver)
• उशीरम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: उशीर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

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

• अनुलेपनम्: ointment/anointing paste
• अनुलेपनम्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अनुलेपन (प्रातिपदिक; अनु + लिप् धातोः ल्युट्)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Characteristics and decline of Kali-yuga

Teaching: Ethical

Quality: authoritative

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Kali-yuga diminishes material abundance and even ordinary comforts, urging detachment from sensory dependence.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Cultivate simplicity (aparigraha), reduce consumption, and anchor well-being in japa and satsanga rather than luxuries.

Vishishtadvaita: Worldly conditions fluctuate by yuga, but refuge (śaraṇāgati) in Viṣṇu remains the stable support for the jīva.

FAQs

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

This verse uses everyday indicators—reduced grain and diminished quality/availability of milk—to portray Kali-yuga as an age where material conditions mirror the weakening of dharma and social order.

How does Sage Parāśara explain Kali-yuga conditions to Maitreya?

Parāśara lists concrete, observable changes in daily life (food, milk, and even body-anointing customs) to communicate Kali-yuga’s decline in prosperity and refinement within the larger Yuga-cycle teaching.

The theological importance of Lord Vishnu in this context?

Though Vishnu is not named in this line, the teaching presupposes Vishnu’s supreme governance of cosmic time: Yugas unfold under divine order, and the decline of Kali-yuga is part of that regulated cycle.