Shloka 14
Purañjana Captivated by Lust; Time (Caṇḍavega) and Old Age (Kālakanyā) Begin the Siege
गन्धर्व्यस्तादृशीरस्य मैथुन्यश्च सितासिता: । परिवृत्त्या विलुम्पन्ति सर्वकामविनिर्मिताम् ॥ १४ ॥
gandharvyas tādṛśīr asya maithunyaś ca sitāsitāḥ parivṛttyā vilumpanti sarva-kāma-vinirmitām
Junto a Caṇḍavega había tantas gandharvīs como soldados, de naturaleza blanca y negra (día y noche). Ellas, en su incesante rotación, saqueaban todos los enseres destinados al disfrute de los sentidos.
The days have been compared to the soldiers of Caṇḍavega. Night is generally a time for sex enjoyment. Days are considered to be white, and nights are considered to be black, or, from another point of view, there are two kinds of nights — black nights and white nights. All these days and nights combine to pass away our span of life and everything we manufacture for sense gratification. Material activity means manufacturing things for sense gratification. Scientists are conducting research to find out how we can satisfy our senses more and more elaborately. In this Kali-yuga, the demoniac mentality is employed in manufacturing various machines to facilitate the process of sense gratification. There are so many machines for ordinary household activities. There are machines for washing dishes, cleansing the floor, shaving, clipping hair — today everything is done by machine. All these facilities for sense gratification are described in this verse as sarva-kāma-vinirmitām. The time factor, however, is so strong that not only is our span of life being expended, but all the machines and facilities for sense gratification are deteriorating. Therefore in this verse the word vilumpanti, “plundering,” is used. Everything is being plundered from the very beginning of our lives.
FAQs
This verse depicts day and night as white and black pairs that continually revolve and “plunder” the results of one’s material desires—showing how time steadily consumes our lifespan and achievements when consciousness is bound to enjoyment.
Śukadeva Gosvāmī speaks this within the allegory of King Purañjana to reveal how sense-life, companionship in enjoyment, and the cycle of day and night gradually drain one’s vitality and hard-won gains.
Treat time as sacred: reduce compulsive pleasure-seeking, simplify desires, and invest daily hours in sādhana (hearing/chanting, prayer, service). This shifts life from being “plundered” by time to being offered to Bhagavān.