Shloka 61
Ādi-parva Adhyāya 3 — Janamejaya’s Rite, Dhaumya’s Parīkṣā, and Uttanka’s Kuṇḍala Quest (सर्पसत्रप्रस्तावना–गुरुपरीक्षा–उत्तङ्कोपाख्यान)
हे अश्विनीकुमारो! इस कालचक्रकी एकमात्र संवत्सर ही नाभि है, जिसपर रात और दिन मिलाकर सात सौ बीस अरे टिके हुए हैं। वे सब बारह मासरूपी प्रधियों (अरोंको थामनेवाले पुट्टठों)-में जुड़े हुए हैं। अश्विनीकुमारो! यह अविनाशी एवं मायामय कालचक्र बिना नेमिके ही अनियत गतिसे घूमता तथा इहलोक और परलोक दोनों लोकोंकी प्रजाओंका विनाश करता रहता है
he aśvinīkumārau! asya kālacakrasya ekamātraḥ saṃvatsara eva nābhiḥ, yasmin rātriṃ ca dinaṃ ca samāhṛtya saptaśatāni viṃśatiś ca arāḥ pratiṣṭhitāḥ. te sarve dvādaśa-māsa-rūpeṣu pradhīṣu saṃyuktāḥ. aśvinīkumārau! idaṃ avyayaṃ māyāmayaṃ kālacakraṃ vinā nemikayā aniyata-gatyā bhramati, ihaloka-paraloka-ubhayalokayoḥ prajāḥ vināśayati ca.
Rāma disse: “Ó Aśvinīkumāras! Nesta roda do Tempo, o único ano é o cubo. Sobre ele repousam setecentos e vinte raios—noites e dias juntos—ligados aos doze meses que servem de suportes da borda. Ó Aśvinīkumāras! Esta roda do Tempo, imperecível e tecida de ilusão, gira sem uma borda fixa, move-se por um curso imprevisível e continuamente traz destruição aos seres deste mundo e do outro.”
राम उवाच
Educational Q&A
Time is portrayed as an inexorable cosmic wheel: even though it appears structured (year, months, days and nights), its motion is ultimately unpredictable and it brings inevitable decay and destruction to all beings. The ethical implication is sobriety and detachment—recognizing impermanence and acting with dharma before time consumes opportunities.
Rāma addresses the twin gods, the Aśvinīkumāras, using a vivid wheel metaphor to describe the structure and power of Time: the year as hub, days and nights as spokes, months as supporting parts, and the wheel’s relentless turning that destroys beings in both this world and the next.