Shloka 53
Nāgendra–Brāhmaṇa Saṃvāda: Praśna-vidhi and Dharmic Approach on the Gomatī Riverbank
ग्रीवा चास्याभवद् राजन् कालरात्रिर्गुणोत्तरा एतद्धयशिर: कृत्वा नानामूर्तिभिरावृतम्
grīvā cāsyābhavad rājan kālarātrir guṇottarā | etad dhayaśiraḥ kṛtvā nānāmūrtibhir āvṛtam ||
Vaiśaṃpāyana nói: “Tâu Đại vương, cổ của Ngài hóa thành Kālarātri, vượt trội mọi thứ về uy lực kinh hoàng. Lấy đó làm đầu, nó đứng đó, phủ trùm bởi muôn hình vạn trạng.”
वैशग्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse uses terrifying, cosmic imagery to underscore the supremacy of Time and destruction (Kālarātri) as forces that overtake embodied forms; it cautions against pride in power and points toward humility and dharmic restraint in the face of inevitable dissolution.
Vaiśaṃpāyana describes a being (or manifestation) undergoing a fearsome transformation: its neck becomes Kālarātri, and with a horse-like head it appears shrouded in multiple forms, emphasizing a dreadful, many-shaped apparition.