Shloka 2

Prākṛta-pralaya, Pratisarga Doctrine, and the Ishvara-Samanvaya of Yoga and Devotion

Devanagari script

गते परार्धद्वितये कालो लोकप्रकालनः / कालाग्निर्भस्मसात् कर्तुं करोति निकिलं मतिम्

Transliteration

gate parārdhadvitaye kālo lokaprakālanaḥ / kālāgnirbhasmasāt kartuṃ karoti nikilaṃ matim

Translation

രണ്ട് പരാർദ്ധങ്ങൾ കഴിഞ്ഞപ്പോൾ ലോകനിയാമകനായ കാലം തന്നെ ‘കാലാഗ്നി’യായി മാറി സർവ്വബ്രഹ്മാണ്ഡവും ഭസ്മമാക്കാൻ നിശ്ചയിക്കുന്നു।

Word by Word

• गते: when (it) has passed
• गते: Adhikarana (अधिकरण/Locative absolute)
• Type: Verb
• Root: गम् (धातु)
• Form: क्त-प्रत्यय (भूतकृदन्त/Past passive participle), सप्तमी (Locative), एकवचन; नपुंसकलिङ्ग; ‘when (it) has passed’ (locative absolute with following)

• परार्धद्वितये: in the two parārdhas
• परार्धद्वितये: Adhikarana (अधिकरण/Locative absolute)
• Type: Noun
• Root: परार्ध + द्वितय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष (परार्धयोः द्वितयम् = pair of half-ages)

• कालः: Time
• कालः: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: काल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• लोकप्रकालनः: regulator of the worlds
• लोकप्रकालनः: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: लोक + प्रकालन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष (लोकस्य प्रकालनः = regulator/impeller of the worlds)

• कालाग्निः: the fire of time
• कालाग्निः: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: काल + अग्नि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन; तत्पुरुष (कालस्य अग्निः = fire of time)

• भस्मसात्: to ashes
• भस्मसात्: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Adverbial)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: भस्मसात् (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रियाविशेषण (adverb: to ashes/into ashes)

• कर्तुम्: to make
• कर्तुम्: Prayojana (प्रयोजन/Purpose)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: तुमुन्-प्रत्यय (infinitive), अव्यय; प्रयोजन (in order to do/make)

• करोति: does/makes
• करोति: Kriya (क्रिया/Verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• निकिलम्: entire
• निकिलम्: Visheshana (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: निकिल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; विशेषण मतिम्/समस्तम् (entire)

• मतिम्: the mind/understanding
• मतिम्: Karma (कर्म/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मति (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन; कर्म

Speaker

Narrator (Purāṇic discourse tradition; teaching on pralaya under the authority of Hari/Kūrma)

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: bhayanaka

Secondary Rasa: raudra

Characters & Entities

• Kāla
• Kālāgni
• Loka (the worlds)

More Details (4 sections)

FAQs

How does this verse explain the nature of the Supreme Self (Atman)?

By portraying Time as the power that turns all worlds to ash, the verse implies that all manifested forms are impermanent; the seeker is thereby led to the changeless Self (Ātman/Iśvara) that stands beyond Kāla and pralaya.

What Yoga or Meditative practices are highlighted here?

The verse supports vairāgya (dispassion) and śama (inner calm): contemplation on pralaya and Kāla helps the practitioner loosen attachment to the transient world—an essential foundation for Pāśupata-oriented devotion, meditation, and liberation-focused discipline in the Kūrma Purāṇa.

How does this verse depict the relationship between Shiva and Vishnu?

Although neither name appears directly, the image of Kālāgni (often associated with Rudra’s destructive fire) functioning as the cosmic law aligns with the Purāṇa’s synthesis: the same Supreme Lord—under Shaiva or Vaishnava expression—governs creation and dissolution through unified divine power.