Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 58
Yuga-Dharma Framework, Kali-Yuga Diagnosis, and the Hari-Nāma Remedy
Transition to Vedānta Inquiry
धर्मविध्वंसशीलानां द्विजानां द्विजसत्तम । शूद्रा धर्मान्प्रवक्ष्यंतिह्यधिरुह्योत्तमासनम् ॥ ५८ ॥
dharmavidhvaṃsaśīlānāṃ dvijānāṃ dvijasattama | śūdrā dharmānpravakṣyaṃtihyadhiruhyottamāsanam || 58 ||
O pinakamainam sa mga dvija, kapag ang mga dvija ay nahilig sa pagwasak ng Dharma, ang mga Śūdra ay aakyat sa pinakamataas na luklukan at magsisimulang magpaliwanag ng Dharma.
Sanatkumara (teaching Narada)
Vrata: none
Primary Rasa: bhayanaka
Secondary Rasa: karuna
FAQs
It warns that when those entrusted with preserving dharma abandon it, moral and spiritual authority becomes inverted—an indicator of dharma’s decline and a call for self-correction among the learned.
Indirectly, it highlights that external status and “seats of authority” are unreliable in times of decline; seekers should anchor themselves in genuine sādhana and devotion to the Lord rather than mere social prestige.
No specific Vedanga (like Vyākaraṇa or Jyotiṣa) is taught in this verse; it is primarily a dharma-diagnostic statement about who upholds or distorts dharma in an age of decline.