Shloka 63
इन्द्रद्युम्नोपाख्यानम्
Indradyumna Upākhyāna: On Kīrti, Smṛti, and Restoration
धैर्य त्यक्त्वा महीपाल दारुणे युगसंक्षये । विकर्माणि करिष्यन्ति शूद्राणां परिचारका:,राजन! श्रेष्ठ ब्राह्मण भी लुटेरोंसे पीड़ित होकर कौओंकी तरह काँव-काँव करते फिरेंगे। दुष्ट राजाओंके लगाये हुए करोंके भारसे सदा पीड़ित होनेके कारण वे धैर्य छोड़कर चल देंगे और शूद्रोंकी सेवा-शुश्रूषामें लगे रहकर धर्मविरुद्ध कार्य करेंगे। भूपाल! भयंकर कलियुगके अन्तमें जगत्की यही दशा होगी
dhairyaṁ tyaktvā mahīpāla dāruṇe yugasaṁkṣaye | vikarmāṇi kariṣyanti śūdrāṇāṁ paricārakāḥ ||
Mārkaṇḍeya said: “O king, when the dreadful end of the age arrives, people will abandon steadfastness. Those who ought to uphold higher duties will instead become attendants of the Śūdras and engage in actions contrary to dharma. Thus, at the fearful close of Kali, the world will fall into this condition—virtue weakened, social order inverted, and righteous conduct displaced by expediency and fear.”
मार्कण्डेय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse warns that in the degeneration at the end of an age, people lose moral courage (dhairya) and drift into vikarma—conduct opposed to dharma—often driven by fear, pressure, and the collapse of rightful social responsibilities.
Mārkaṇḍeya is addressing a king and describing a future time of yuga-decline: societal roles invert, those expected to uphold higher duties become dependent attendants, and unrighteous behavior becomes widespread—an omen-like depiction of the end of Kali.