Shloka 67
इन्द्रद्युम्नोपाख्यानम्
Indradyumna Upākhyāna: On Kīrti, Smṛti, and Restoration
देवस्थानेषु चैत्येषु नागानामालयेषु च । एड्डकचिह्ना पृथिवी न देवगृहभूषिता,युगान्तकालमें शूद्र द्विजातियोंकी सेवा नहीं करेंगे। वह समय आनेपर महर्षियोंके आश्रमोंमें, ब्राह्मणोंके घरोंमें, देवस्थानोंमें, चैत्यवृक्षोंके आस-पास और नागालयोंमें जो भूमि होगी, उसपर हड्डी जड़ी हुई दीवारोंका चिह्न तो उपलब्ध होगा; परंतु देवमन्दिर उस भूमिकी शोभा नहीं बढ़ायेंगे
devasthāneṣu caityeṣu nāgānām ālayeṣu ca | eḍḍakacihnā pṛthivī na devagṛhabhūṣitā ||
Mārkaṇḍeya said: “In the precincts of temples, near sacred shrines and holy trees, and even at the dwellings of the Nāgas, the earth will bear only the marks of grim, bone-like fortifications and desolate remnants; it will no longer be adorned by houses of the gods. This is spoken as a sign of the age’s decline—when reverence, service, and sacred order fade, even places once set apart for worship lose their beauty and protection.”
मार्कण्डेय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse presents a moral warning: when dharma declines, sacred spaces lose their sanctity and protection. The disappearance of temples and the presence of harsh, ruin-like traces symbolize the erosion of reverence, social responsibility, and religious upkeep.
Mārkaṇḍeya is describing ominous features of a future degenerate age. He lists traditionally sacred locations—temples, shrines/holy trees, and Nāga-dwellings—and says that instead of being beautified by temples, the land there will show only bleak signs, indicating widespread neglect of worship and sacred order.