SanskritIASTMeaning
कालःkālaḥtime
पचतिpacaticooks; ripens; wears down
भूतानिbhūtānibeings
संहरतिsaṃharatidestroys; takes away
प्रजाःprajāḥcreatures; beings
निर्दहन्तम्nirdahantamthat which burns (time itself)
कालम्kālamtime
शमयतेśamayatepacifies; extinguishes
पुनःpunaḥagain
विकुरुतेvikurutetransforms; alters
भावान्bhāvānstates
सर्वान्sarvānall
लोकेlokein the world
शुभाशुभान्śubha-aśubhānauspicious and inauspicious
संक्षिपतेsaṃkṣipatecontracts; draws in
सर्वाः प्रजाःsarvāḥ prajāḥall creatures
विसृजतेvisṛjatereleases again; creates
सर्वेषु भूतेषुsarveṣu bhūteṣuamong all beings
चरतिcaratimoves; roams
अविधृतःavidhṛtaḥunchecked; held back by nothing
समःsamaḥequal; impartial
कालःkālaḥoriginal word form «kālaḥ», included here for full coverage of the word-by-word segment
निर्दहन्तंnirdahantaṃoriginal word form «nirdahantaṃ», included here for full coverage of the word-by-word segment
कालंkālaṃoriginal word form «kālaṃ», included here for full coverage of the word-by-word segment
कालःkālaḥoriginal word form «kālaḥ», included here for full coverage of the word-by-word segment
कालोkālooriginal word form «kālo», included here for full coverage of the word-by-word segment
सर्वांल्sarvāṃloriginal word form «sarvāṃl», included here for full coverage of the word-by-word segment
शुभाशुभान्śubhāśubhānoriginal word form «śubhāśubhān», included here for full coverage of the word-by-word segment
कालःkālaḥoriginal word form «kālaḥ», included here for full coverage of the word-by-word segment
प्रजाprajāoriginal word form «prajā», included here for full coverage of the word-by-word segment
पुनःpunaḥoriginal word form «punaḥ», included here for full coverage of the word-by-word segment
कालःkālaḥoriginal word form «kālaḥ», included here for full coverage of the word-by-word segment
चरत्य्caratyoriginal word form «caraty», included here for full coverage of the word-by-word segment
Here stands the famous hymn to time (kala): it wears down and consumes all things, transforms good and evil, draws the world in and creates it anew, and moves among all beings, held back by no one and impartial to all. At first this sounds like blind fate. But the tradition reads it otherwise: time is the Lord's own formidable energy — indeed, the Lord Himself in the form of Time. In the Gita (11.32) Krishna proclaims, "I am time, the destroyer of worlds." So the "impartiality" of time is the impartiality of divine law, and its unstoppable force is the irresistibility of the Supreme's will. And the conclusion is not one of despair: what lies beyond human control lies within the Lord's control; one who surrenders to Him attains what is beyond time — eternal life in the service of Hari.