SB 6.1.47

SB 6.1.47

Devanagari

वर्तमानोऽन्ययो: कालो गुणाभिज्ञापको यथा । एवं जन्मान्ययोरेतद्धर्माधर्मनिदर्शनम् ॥ ४७ ॥

Verse text

vartamāno ’nyayoḥ kālo guṇābhijṣāpako yathā evaṁ janmānyayor etad dharmādharma-nidarśanam

Synonyms

vartamānaḥ the present ; anyayoḥ of the past and future ; kālaḥ time ; guṇa abhijṣāpakaḥ — making known the qualities ; yathā just as ; evam thus ; janma birth ; anyayoḥ of the past and future births ; etat this ; dharma religious principles ; adharma irreligious principles ; nidarśanam indicating .

Translation

Just as springtime in the present indicates the nature of springtimes in the past and future, so this life of happiness, distress or a mixture of both gives evidence concerning the religious and irreligious activities of one’s past and future lives.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

Just as the qualities of the present make known the qualities of the past and the future, the qualities of dharma and adharma in this birth indicate those qualities in past and future lives. The present life gives understanding of the extent of dharma and adharma in the previous and next life. An example is given. The spring time of the present gives an understanding of the qualities of spring with its fruits and flowers--in the past and the spring in the future. Similarly this life shows the dharma and adharma of previous and past lives.

Purport

Our past and future are not very difficult to understand, for time is under the contamination of the three modes of material nature. As soon as spring arrives, the usual exhibition of various types of fruits and flowers automatically becomes manifest, and therefore we may conclude that spring in the past was adorned with similar fruits and flowers and will be so adorned in the future also. Our repetition of birth and death is taking place within time, and according to the influence of the modes of nature, we are receiving various types of bodies and being subjected to various conditions.