Shloka 30
इन्द्रद्युम्नोपाख्यानम्
Indradyumna Upākhyāna: On Kīrti, Smṛti, and Restoration
अधर्मपाददविद्धस्तु त्रिभिरंशै: प्रतिष्ठित: । त्रेतायां द्वापरेडर्थेन व्यामिश्रो धर्म उच्यते,प्रायश: कृपणानां हि तथाबन्धुमतामपि । विधवानां च वित्तानि हरिष्यन्तीह मानवा: लोग प्राय: दीनों, असहायों तथा विधवाओंका भी धन हड़प लेंगे
adharmapādād aviddhastu tribhir aṁśaiḥ pratiṣṭhitaḥ | tretāyāṁ dvāpare ’rthena vyāmiśro dharma ucyate | prāyaśaḥ kṛpaṇānāṁ hi tathā bandhumatām api | vidhavānāṁ ca vittāni hariṣyantīha mānavāḥ ||
Disse Mārkaṇḍeya: “Quando o Dharma for trespassado pelo pé do Adharma, ele se sustentará apenas em três partes. Nas eras Tretā e Dvāpara, diz-se que o Dharma é misto—maculado pela busca de riqueza. Nesses tempos, as pessoas comumente tomarão os bens dos desamparados e dos pobres, mesmo dos que têm parentes; e aqui também tirarão a fortuna das viúvas.”
मार्कण्डेय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse warns that when Adharma gains ground, Dharma becomes unstable and ‘mixed’ with self-interest (artha). A key symptom of this moral decline is exploitation: society preys on the vulnerable—especially the helpless and widows—by seizing their property.
Mārkaṇḍeya is describing the degeneration of moral order across the ages. He characterizes the Tretā and Dvāpara as periods where Dharma is no longer pure, because material motives intrude, leading to widespread social wrongdoing such as dispossessing widows and other weak persons.