66
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam
[Canto 1, Ch. 1]
of the people in this age of Kali, or the iron age of quarrel, the sages requested that Sūta Gosvāmī give a summary of all revealed scriptures because the people of this age are condemned in every respect. The sages, therefore, inquired of the absolute good, which is the ultimate good for the people. The condemned state of affairs of the people of this age is described as follows.
TEXT 10
प्रायेणाल्यायुषः सम्य कलावसिन् युगे जनाः । मन्दाः सुमन्दमतयो मन्दभाग्या ह्युपद्रुताः ॥१०॥
prāyeṇālpāyuṣaḥ sabhya kalāv asmin yuge janāḥ mandāḥ sumanda-matayo manda-bhāgyā hy upadrutāḥ
prāyeṇa—almost always; alpa—meager; āyuṣaḥ—duration of life; sabhya—menber of the learned society; kalau—in this age of Kali (quarrel); asmin—herein; yuge—age; janāḥ—the public; mandāḥ—lazy; sumanda-matayaḥ—misguided; manda-bhāgyāḥ—unlucky; hi—and above all; upadrutāḥ—disturbed.
TRANSLATION
O learned one, in this iron age of Kali men have but short lives. They are quarrelsome, lazy, misguided, unlucky and above all, always disturbed.
PURPORT
The devotees of the Lord are always anxious for the spiritual improvement of the general public. When the sages of Naimiṣāraṇya analyzed the state of affairs of the people in this age of Kali, they foresaw that men would live short lives. In Kali-yuga, the duration of life is shortened not so much because of insufficient food but because of irregular habits. By keeping regular habits and eating simple food, any man can maintain his health. Overeating, over sense gratification, over dependence on another's mercy, and artificial standards of living sap the very vitality of human energy. Therefore the duration of life is shortened.
The people of this age are also very lazy, not only materially but in the