Skandapurana 17.18

The King said: / "When Vāmana arrived at the great sacred field of Vastrāpatha, / what did he do from then on? Tell me that in detail."

Sārasvata said: / "Vāmana took up residence before Bhava, O best of kings, / having bathed in the water of the Svarṇarekhā and devoutly worshipped Bhava.

In a secluded, pure place, free from thorns and bones, / covered with a black-antelope skin, he sat down on an excellent seat."

Assuming the lotus posture, the steadfast best of brahmins became motionless; / performing the throat lock, gazing straight at his nose,

Casting aside all thought of house, fields, wives, and wealth, / and abandoning the Vaiṣṇava illusion, he observed silence with subdued senses.

Taking no food, conquering anger, freed from the bondage of saṃsāra, / placing his arms in the lotus posture, his eyes slightly closed, / knowing the mind to be exceedingly unsteady, the brahmin made it firm within his heart.

Gradually, through the practice of yoga, he united into one the divided / vital breaths named prāṇa, apāna, vyāna, udāna, and samāna.

Thus drawing it into the heart, holding it in all the joints, / and bringing it to the seat of Brahman, he firmly applied it to Brahman.

When he draws in the external breath and fills the body, / then that is to be known as inhalation (pūraka); now I shall explain exhalation (recaka).

And when the internal breath gradually departs outside, O king, / then that is to be known as exhalation; from retention arises kumbhaka.

When yogins know the twenty-five principles, / they are freed from all sins, even those committed in seven lifetimes.

The king said: / Which are the principles? Who is the embodied soul? Tell me what yogins ought to know. / How does one in whom the true nature of knowledge has arisen become united with yoga?

Īśvara said: / Primordial nature (prakṛti), and from that intellect (buddhi), then egoism (ahaṃkāra) arose; / from that the five subtle elements: such is the eightfold prakṛti.

Know the five organs of perception and the five organs of action, / the mind as the eleventh, and the five gross elements;

This group of sixteen has been proclaimed at length in the Sāṃkhya. / These are twenty-four principles; the person (puruṣa) is the twenty-fifth.

He is called the embodied soul within the body, and he perceives the self. / They attain the supreme self, which is the twenty-sixth, beyond the twenty-five.

The varieties of postures and so forth are always to be known first. / When they see a light resembling the flame of a lamp within the heart,

Those yogins are declared by the wise to be ones in whom the true nature of knowledge has arisen. / First he wears away old age; diseases perish far away;

When the mass of all sins is exhausted, he subsequently encounters death. / No man in the world dies if the yogin knows it himself.

Then, closing the ten apertures, he releases the breaths. / Having exhausted merit and sin, the breaths of the yogins depart; / they attain the lordly power of the qualities such as lightness in the abode of Śiva.

Through this yoga of meditation, a mortal beholds Bhava. / Everything conceived by the mind is attained through the vision of Bhava.

While the brahmin Vāmana remained thus in the presence of Bhava, / he then saw Nārada descended from the sky.

Vāmana said: / Great seer, is all well with you today? Whence have you come? / I bow to you, great seer; you are indeed Brahmā in the three worlds.

Nārada said: / I have arrived from the world of heaven. What well-being can I tell you of?

By the comings and goings of the sun, a day of Brahmā is completed. / At the end of the day night arises; in the night the deities perish.

What to say of the mortal world, where people die day by day? / The sky has become filled with smoke; the gods have gone to the house of Bali.

The seven seers, chaste disciples of Brahmā, have gone there; / Hāhā, Hūhū, and Tuṃbaru, and both Nārada and Parvata have gone.

The hosts of apsarases and gandharvas have arrived at Bali's palace. / A sacrifice to pacify portents is being performed by Bali himself.

I wish to go right there, to see the sacrifice at Bali's house. / Bali has performed nine hundred and ninety-nine sacrifices.

When this is completed, the entire realm will belong to the Daityas. / Some extraordinary vow has been undertaken by him in the sacrificial rite: / 'Whatever is personally asked for by the twice-born must be given by me.

Even if forbidden, it must be given by me; let my word be true! / Even myself, my wives, kingdom, and my beloved sons—

If requested, should I not give, let my sacrifice be in vain!' / Because of this statement of his, a great headache has arisen in me: / having made this vow, how will this sacrifice be completed?

I see no means of foiling it, though I wander through the three worlds. / Knowing you to be the destroyer of it, I have approached you.

Act now in such a way that the sacrifice is not completed.

Vāmana said: / Great seer, hear my words: what power is there in me? / Who am I, and why should I do this? The gods have gathered at the sacrifice,

As well as the seers and all the brahmins; how will it become futile? / Hear another word of mine, O brahmin-seer, lord of sacred prayer:

You have no wife, nor do you have sons; why is your disposition like this? / Without war you have no joy, nor any joy without conflict!

Whatever kind it may be, a verbal dispute is ever dear to you. / Bathing, twilight prayers, silent recitation, oblation, and libation to the ancestors and gods—

Nārada does one thing, while other brahmins do another. / A curiosity has arisen in me as well; tell me quickly, great seer!

Nārada said: / Hear, Vāmana: when the Padma Kalpa had passed, at the end of the night, / the cosmic egg was pervaded by water; nothing else existed.

The god of gods was sleeping upon the waters, and he is traditionally known as Nārāyaṇa. / He is Brahmā, he is Śiva; there is no difference between them.

When they become distinct, then they are the three deities. / In order to make the Vārāha Kalpa, the three then became distinct:

The gods Brahmā, Viṣṇu, and Hara, consisting of the qualities of rajas, sattva, and tamas. / Thus Brahmā performs creation, and Hari preserves it;

Hara destroys the entire threefold world, together with the moving and unmoving. / Having set this in motion, the lords of gods sat on excellent seats / on the delightful peak of Kailāsa and took counsel with one another.

"Among the three, which god is superior? Which is the eldest? Which has more virtues?" / There was no fourth who knew; the three of them stood suddenly perplexed.

From them arose a blazing light that merged into one in the sky; / endowed with the measure of time, it revolved as the solar orb.

"I am the eldest!" "No, I am the eldest!"—thus a dispute arose between Hara and Brahmā. / As the two argued, out of their wrath I was born from the mouth, O Lord.

"Why, O god, do you not know what was spoken by Brahmā then? / Ten incarnations were yours to sport in ancient times, the Fish, the Tortoise, and the others."

They were restrained by Rudra, who came and said: "Quarreling is not fitting for you." / Viṣṇu acted just so, assuming those ten incarnations.

At the beginning of the kalpa, I was born from the mouth of Brahmā, O best of the twice-born; / because my birth was from a quarrel, therefore quarreling is dear to me.

At the beginning of the kalpa, while creating in the past, Brahmā himself reflected: / "As one knowing the Vedānta, alas, how is creation to be performed by me, O Hari?

I do not know the lost Vedas, nor where those Vedas have gone; / nor do I know the earth—whether it is in its place, or has sunk below.

There is no power in me to go into the midst of the waters now; / through ten incarnations, the protection of creation must be accomplished by you.

Moving in the water, you will become a fish in the great ocean; / having swiftly taken the Vedas, you ought to give them to me."

And the Lord did so, assuming the great form of a fish in the water; / he brought together the Vedas and gave them to Brahmā long ago. / "Assuming again the form of a tortoise, you will support Mount Mandara;

Lakṣmī shall choose you," so was Viṣṇu told by Brahmā. / "Long ago I witnessed your wondrous conduct during the churning [of the ocean].

When the earth reached the netherworld, Rasātala, and was not seen at all— / when its place was made for the sake of the universe, it was not seen there at all—

let the form of a boar be assumed!" Thus impelled by Brahmā himself, / he assumed the form of a great boar and went beneath the earth.

And then, uplifting the earth with the tip of his tusk, / Viṣṇu brought it to its proper place, like a clump of mustā-grass from the surface of the soil.

Indeed, that was the third incarnation, charming even to Hara, / by which that broad earth was upheld along with the mountains.

Now I shall tell of the fourth, Narasiṃha, who was exceedingly terrible. / The Ādityas were sons of Aditi, and the two sons of Diti were of mighty strength:

the daitya Hiraṇyakaśipu and Hiraṇyākṣa of mighty strength. / All the gods dwelt in heaven, and the daityas and dānavas in Pātāla.

The daitya Hiraṇyakaśipu ruled the kingdom in Rasātala; / the sons of Manu were established on the surface of the earth by the gods and the dānavas.

Overstepping that arrangement, O twice-born, Hiraṇyakaśipu / ruled on the surface of the earth, having conquered Indra, the lord of the gods.

Seizing the earth with its seven continents, and wishing to seize / Amarāvatī as well, he enjoyed [sovereignty], honored by his sons and grandsons.

That dull-witted one tormented his sons, foremost among whom was Prahlāda. / While the sons were being instructed in reciting, Prahlāda recited that

which, when recited, caused torment to [the daitya]. / With his dominion over two worlds, the daitya showed no regard for the gods.

Pleased by his austerity, Lord Brahmā gave him a boon: / he gave him immortality against the gods and against men, O best of the gods.

"May death not come to me from anything; but if it must be, / may it be from one who is partly lion and partly man, who bears the earth;

torn by his claws, may I not die on the surface of the earth." / Having said, "So shall it be," Brahmā went away in astonishment.

As time passed, a great conflict arose within him: / "What will the gods do to me? What need have I of Viṣṇu?

I alone should ever be worshiped with sacrifices! What will Rudra do to me?" / While he was behaving in this manner, Prahlāda praised that Hari.

He remembered only that Hari by whom [the daitya's] death would be brought about. / Even when restrained, he cried out: "Hari! Hari!"

"I remember Viṣṇu, four-armed, holding the conch, mace, and sword, / clad in yellow garments, ever adorned with the Kaustubha jewel, / the sole lord of the universe, who grants liberation as soon as he is remembered."

Enraged by these words, the daitya commanded the daityas: / "Kill that wicked one by means of elephants, serpents, water, and fire!"

Prahlāda said: / "Viṣṇu is in the elephant, Viṣṇu is in the serpent, Viṣṇu is in the water, Viṣṇu is in the fire; / he abides in you, O daitya, and he abides in me; apart from Viṣṇu, even the host of daityas does not exist."

When, though being subjected to death, he met death nowhere, / Hiraṇyakaśipu's chest burned with the fire of wrath. / Then, placing his son before his face in order to discipline him,

he prepared to kill his son himself with harsh words: / "Fie on you! You praise Nārāyaṇa; if you praise my enemy again,

I will sever your head with my excellent sword as if plucking a flower! / I am Viṣṇu! I am Brahmā, Rudra, and Indra! Speak what is best!

Forsaking your own father, whom else do you praise, boy?"

When the boy did not recite and did not praise his own father, / struck with a staff, Prahlāda was urged again by his teacher: / "Speak this one word, pupil; give me the fee due to the teacher,

so that my master may be pleased and give me abundant wealth."

Prahlāda said: / "Strike me first, teacher; [yet] I will obey your word: / I praise Viṣṇu, by whom the three worlds, with the moving and the unmoving,

were created, sustained, and brought to peace; may that Viṣṇu be pleased with me! / Brahmā is Viṣṇu, Hara is Viṣṇu, Indra, Vāyu, Yama, and Agni;

the principles beginning with nature, and the twenty-fifth, the Spirit— / he resides in the body of my father, in the body of my teacher, and in my body as well.

Knowing thus, how can I praise a vile man who is subject to death?"

The teacher said: / "Who is the lowest among men, O pupil, low from birth to death? / Why do you, facing death, not praise your father, [instead of] Hari, Hari?"

Prahlāda said: / "While eating, lying down, traveling, in fever, spitting, or in battle, / one who does not utter the syllable 'Hari' at the time of death is the lowest of men. / In danger, in the royal court, in battle, in disease, during union with a woman, in the forest, / in weakness, or during renunciation, [and] at the time of death, dwelling on earth, / fools and the lowest of men remember their mother and father.

I have no mother, no father, nor do I have any kinsman. / Except for Hari, no one exists. Let whatever is deemed proper be done!"

Enraged by such words, the Daitya rose to kill [him]. / Then his mother came and stood before her son:

"Brothers, kinsmen, your sister says: 'Do not speak of Hari!' / I am your mother, here is your sister, your brothers, and your kin. / [Act] so that we, united together, may live for many days, my child."

Prahlāda said: / "Who is my mother? Who is my sister? Who are my brothers, and who is my father? / Listen to who my kin are, O mother, with whom I dwell forever.

She whose urine and vast excrement I drank within the womb— / that mother is hell for us; more cannot be spoken before [her].

No second [such person] was fashioned by Viśvakarman / like such a man in whose heart there is no Hari.

Surely I think he will drink urine for ten months, fully satisfied. / How could brothers indeed be brothers if they were also in the womb?

How will the wretched mother hold them back when they fight? / A kinsman is seen grown old, behaving like a wise man toward others.

Why is it called a family, which comes and goes? / And the attachment to family leads us to hell.

I have another mother, another father, and other brothers; / knowing the true connection to sister and kin, one attains liberation.

Our mother is Prakṛti; the intellect is spoken of as our sister; / from that is born the ego-sense, which is inferred as 'I'.

The subtle elements are my five uterine brothers who go along with me. / This is our Prakṛti, and its modification is my kin.

He who carries these, the twenty-fifth principle, the Puruṣa— / he is my father, the Supreme Self, Hari, dwelling within this body.

If this Hari is meditated upon in the mind and seen in the heart, / sovereign power endowed with the qualities of atomicity and the rest belongs to that very state.

The kingdom approved by you is to me always like blades of grass, / where Viṣṇu, Brahmā, Rudra, the wind, and fire are not worshiped.

He who is visibly seen, who wanders without support— / he indeed is the Lord Viṣṇu, as well as these who abide in the sky.

All the planets and these constellations that remain fixed to the pole star— / all of them do not fall to the surface of the earth by Viṣṇu's command.

In due time, the destruction of all is brought about by him alone. / Reflecting thus, I have no fear of you or of death."

At the conclusion of his words, his father struck [him] with his foot and said: / "Where is he? I will kill him first, and after that you who speak of Hari!"

Prahlāda said: / "The elements beginning with earth are that very Lord Hari. / On dry land, in water—why say more? The entire universe is composed of Viṣṇu.

Hari abides in grass, wood, house, field, wealth, and the body. / He is known through the yoga of knowledge; can he indeed be seen with the eye?

He goes to Brahmā's abode, or into Rasātala, or wanders over the earth's surface in an instant; / he smells fragrance, accomplishes everything, hears, and knows—he is Viṣṇu here."

Addressed thus, casting aside his natural delusion, [the king] rose from his throne; / tightening his belt firmly and drawing a glittering sword,

striking him with the tip of his shield, he spoke unbearable words: / "Now remember Viṣṇu, you wretch! Otherwise your head with glittering earrings / will fall to the ground like a ripe fruit from a tree!

Otherwise, show that Viṣṇu coming forth from this pillar!" / But Prahlāda, abandoning fear, assumed the lotus posture on the ground.

Holding his neck [upright] to direct [the breath] upward and restraining his breath, / meditating on the divine Hari in his heart, he waited, ready for death.

O Lord, then a wonder was seen by me falling from the sky to the earth: / a garland of flowers that was around the neck of Prahlāda moved by itself.

And as the sky was being filled, [people asked,] "What, what is being done by people?" / Suddenly, the people were agitated by the roar breaking from the pillar.

"Will the earth go to Pātāla, or will the sky come down to the ground? / Will his head fall to the earth, struck down by a blow of the sword?"

Just then, a terrifying lion's roar issued from the pillar; / all the Daityas fell to the ground, unconscious from the noise.

Sword and shield dropped from Hiraṇyakaśipu's hand; / he did not know what this was, [asking] again and again, "What is this?"

As he stood up and looked, he saw that Hari: / a man below, a formidable lion above,

with a terrifying mouth full of fangs, as if licking the sky, / with a blazing body, striking his head with his tail,

making a loud roar from his great throat like a rumbling cloud, / with his mane standing upright, difficult to behold for gods and demons.

Seeing Narasiṃha, he fell again to the ground. / Seizing him by his mass of hair, [the Lord] whirled him in the air.

Having whirled him a hundred times, he smashed him onto the earth; / yet that king of the Daityas did not die, on account of Brahmā's boon.

Then Hari was loudly reminded by the gods abiding in the sky; / placing the Daitya on his lap, joyful, and looking at his chest,

He perceived the sound of "Victory, victory!" of the yakṣas and the gods / in his ear, having readied his two arms marked with lotuses.

With his nails resembling jasmine flowers, he tore open the chest of the daitya, / which was scarred by the blows of thunderbolts, emaciated by the mass of bones.

When his chest was torn open, the lord of daityas died and fell down. / Then the three worlds, together with all moving and unmoving beings, were filled with joy.

“I too obtained satisfaction by your grace, Keśava, / just as when the three cities were burned by the grace of Śaṃkara.

It arose again when Hiraṇyākṣa was struck down in due time; / now I have no satisfaction—where shall I go, what shall I do?

On earth the kṣatriyas do not fight with one another. / Why is there no battle of the gods with the dānavas, O Lord?

Now the three worlds with the moving and unmoving beings are pervaded by Bali. / I do not know what your fifth incarnation will do. / This is the time for subduing Bali; therefore reveal it, O Janārdana.”

Sārasvata said: / Having heard all this, Vāmana spoke to the sage.

Vāmana said: / Listen, Nārada, to what occurred when Hiraṇyakaśipu was slain: / Prahlāda, the great Vaiṣṇava, was made king of the daityas.

He ruled over the surface of the earth for many years. / Even while he ruled, indeed, a conflict with the gods

did not occur among the daityas, remembering their ancient enmity. / Having begotten many sons, he ruled the kingdom abundantly.

When Bali was born from Virocana and was still a boy, / [Prahlāda], realizing Hari in secret through a certain yoga,

abandoned his kingdom and beloved sons, and went to the mountain ridges. / Janārdana made his body endure until the end of the kalpa.

Among the many daityas and dānavas a great dispute arose / regarding the kingdom: "Who shall be our king?"

Nārada said: / The sons of Hiraṇyākṣa and his grandsons are very strong; / Virocana and the others are very powerful.

Vṛṣaparvan also, being strong, presented himself for the sake of the kingdom. / Indra, Kubera, Varuṇa, Vāyu, Sūrya, Agni, and Yama

would not be equal to a daitya in strength, form, patience, and the like; / and by virtues such as generosity, and by offspring, he surpassed the asuras.

Being instructed by Śukra, they fight with one another. / When the daityas remember that wickedness at the stealing of the nectar—

"Why do the gods not give us the remainder of the nectar that was drunk?"— / girding themselves thus, they fight with one another.

Never at all does the battle find rest, / because the many daityas and dānavas are bent upon a single purpose.

Having drunk the nectar, the gods became immortal and they conquer. / Tell this reason: why Viṣṇu is superior in strength in battle / over gods, dānavas, daityas, gandharvas, serpents, and rākṣasas.

Vāmana said: / Janārdana is without beginning or end, the creator, protector, and destroyer. / This one alone is the god Śiva, and he is designated as Brahman. / When a deed needs to be done for the one in the world, O king,

having resorted to his body, they perform the work of death. / The entire egg of Brahmā pays tribute to Viṣṇu, because he is the granter of boons; / therefore Viṣṇu is superior in strength, and none other is like him.

Viṣṇu is intent upon protection; what use are others with their physical eyes? / Indra and all the other gods are performers of Viṣṇu's business.

Having performed creation, Brahmā then [rested]; Hara remained on Kailāsa. / Viṣṇu cannot be [controlled] by the gods; they wander about the three worlds.

Whenever someone acts contrarily in this world, / Janārdana approaches and destroys him indeed.

Do not be disheartened, O mighty-armed Nārada, in your mind; / I shall relate that divine story which takes away all sins.

Formerly, while those daityas were disputing for the sake of the kingdom, / Prahlāda came and established the arrangement himself:

“He who is endowed with all auspicious marks, long-lived, exceedingly strong, / devoted to sacrifice, ever joyful, having many sons, exceedingly invincible,

who does not fight with the gods, who knows Viṣṇu to be invincible, / who has no death in battle, who is completely generous,

who never makes his own word in vain, / and who shines with splendor in the midst of all sons and grandsons,

being consecrated by Śukra, he shall be your king.” / Having said, “The guru is the authority,” he departed to where he had come from.

And so those daityas and dānavas together did so; / Virocana and the other sons and grandsons went in person.

Each one was examined by the guru with discernment; / the virtues spoken of by Prahlāda were not present in Virocana.

Nor were they found in the other daityas; even Vṛṣaparvan was not like that. / As the sons, Bali and the others, were examined, O sage, / when all were inspected by Śukra, those virtues were observed in Bali.

Seeing them abundant in Bali's body, they were announced to the daityas: / “Bali is superior in virtues, O daityas; what should I do?

By some stroke of destiny Bali will become Indra. / Just as the father is in the world, so the son may be;

and the grandson certainly becomes like that, if not the son. / Prahlāda was a great yogin, a devotee of Viṣṇu, beloved of Viṣṇu.

Therefore certain virtues of Hiraṇyakaśipu are in Virocana. / If the eldest, Virocana, is placed on the throne, O asuras, / Narasiṃha will surely come and kill him.”

The kingdom was also relinquished by Virocana, who was afraid of death. / All the virtues of Prahlāda were established in Bali's body.

Thus, having made an agreement, they consecrated Bali in the kingdom. / He who is Prahlāda is indeed Viṣṇu, and he who is Viṣṇu is Bali himself.

Therefore, he was befriended by the gods and freed from hostilities; / all gods and asuras made a union under Bali's rule.

Hearing his words too, the lord of gods [went] to my dwelling; / the Vālakhilyas arrived, and I was cursed and turned into a dwarf.

Having propitiated them, I said, 'Grant me release from the curse.' / They said, 'It will take place after the subjugation of Bali.'

You too have an eager desire for battle, and Bali is performing a sacrifice; / there is no restraint placed on the gods; all have arrived at the sacrifice.

He worships me with the sacrifice; who would kill him? / And I have become a dwarf, while Nārada is filled with curious eagerness.

All this appears contradictory in my mind; / even so, in due course, I shall make everything turn out well."

Nārada said: / "Be gracious, O Lord of Gods, for I have a curious desire for battle. / When kṣatriyas are slain in battle by a single brahmin, / as was previously told to me by my father, then battle shall take place.

You have been born as a brahmin; when will you wage battle?" / Laughing, the dwarf said, "Your [wish] shall come true.

Becoming the son of Jamadagni, having taken Maheśvara as my guru, / I will slay Kārttavīrya along with many kṣatriyas.

At Samantapañcaka I will make five lakes of blood; / there I will offer oblations to my fathers and grandfathers.

I will make it a sacred field; you will come there, / and an immense battle, delightful to you, shall be [fought] to your pleasure.

Whenever the kṣatriyas seize the earth again from the brahmins, / I will slay them right then and give back the earth.

Three times seven times I will give away the earth, conquering it again and again. / Having laid down my weapons, weary of the acts of war, / I will wander happily in pleasant forests and mountain ridges.

In Laṅkā the mighty Rāvaṇa will rule; / when he bears the name 'Thorn of the Three Worlds,'

then I will become Rāma, son of Daśaratha, increaser of Kauśalyā's joy; / together with my brothers I will go to the sacrificial hall.

Striking down Tāḍakā and Subāhu in the sacrificial pavilion, / departing from the sacrifice, I will go to Sītā's svayaṃvara.

Breaking Maheśvara's bow, I will marry Sītā; / abandoning the kingdom, I will go to the forest for fourteen years.

The sorrow born of the abduction of Sītā will first befall me; / I will make that rākṣasa woman in the forest deprived of nose and ears.

Having slain the fourteen thousand [demons], Triśiras, Khara, and Dūṣaṇa, / I will slay the rākṣasa Mārīca who has taken the form of a deer.

Bereft of my wife, having cremated the vulture Jaṭāyu, I will proceed; / forming a friendship with Sugrīva, and then killing Vālin,

I will have the ocean bridged by the monkeys headed by Nala; / I will surround Laṅkā and slay the rākṣasas.

Having killed Kumbhakarṇa in combat, and then Meghanāda in battle, / [and] slaying the rākṣasa Rāvaṇa before the eyes of all the rākṣasas,

I will give Laṅkā, fashioned by the gods, to Vibhīṣaṇa; / returning again to Ayodhyā, making the kingdom free of thorns,

by the wondrous conduct of Kāla and Durvāsas, / I will go to Amarāvatī with my brothers, having entrusted the kingdom to my son.

When the Dvāpara age arrives, the earth, / burdened by many kṣatriyas and unable [to bear it], will prepare to sink down to Pātāla.

In Mathurā at that time the great asura Kaṃsa will rule; / [and there will be] Śiśupāla, Jarāsandha, and the great asura Kālanemi,

Pauṇḍraka Vāsudeva, and King Bāṇa, a great asura; / abundant in elephants and horses, they will be slain by me then, O sage.

In the Kali age, clouds will have little water, and cows will have little milk; / there will be no clarified butter in the milk, and no truth among people.

People will be ruined by thieves and afflicted by diseases; / even when reduced to a state of conflict, they will find no protector.

The small rivers flowing westward will dry up in Kārttika; / there will be no observance of Ekādaśī, nor of the dark Caturdaśī.

No man will recognize valor even in his own home; / everything will be ruined by poverty and devoid of twilight prayers and ritual ablution; / all this will occur in the Kali age, not in the previous three ages.

The son will abandon his father and mother and attend only to his wife; / there will be no teacher or kinsman; no one will serve anyone else.

In whatever measure the Kali age pervades the surface of the earth, / in that same measure all people will become uniform [in degradation].

Everything will be ruined by mlecchas, bereft of twilight prayers and ritual ablution; / I will indeed become a brahmin renowned as Kalki.