Bhagavad Gita · Vishvarupa Darshana YogaChapter 11, Shloka 32 (11.32)
Original Sanskrit · श्रीभगवान्
श्रीभगवानुवाच
कालोऽस्मि लोकक्षयकृत् प्रवृद्धो
लोकान् समाहर्तुमिह प्रवृत्तः
ऋतेऽपि त्वां न भविष्यन्ति सर्वे
येऽवस्थिताः प्रत्यनीकेषु योधाः
॥ 11.32 ॥
kālo'smi lokakṣayakṛt pravṛddho
lokān samāhartumiha pravṛttaḥ
ṛte'pi tvāṃ na bhaviṣyanti sarve
ye'vasthitāḥ pratyanīkeṣu yodhāḥ
Translation
The Blessed Lord said: "I am Time, grown mighty, the destroyer of worlds; I am engaged here in gathering up the worlds. Even without you, all the warriors standing in the opposing armies will not survive."
Interpretation
Shankaracharya. lokānāṃ kṣayaṃ karotīti lokakṣayakṛt; ṛte'pi vināpi tvā tvāṃ na bhaviṣyanti bhīṣmadroṇakarṇaprabhṛtayaḥ sarve, yebhyaḥ tava āśaṅkā — those you were anxious about will not survive even without you.
Acharya Ramanuja. kalayati gaṇayati iti kālaḥ — kala (time) = the one who counts; sarveṣāṃ … rājalokānām āyuravasānaṃ gaṇayan — counting down the end of everyone's lifespan; matsaṃkalpād eva tvām ṛte api tvadudyogam ṛte'pi — by my will alone, even without you, even without your effort.
Madhusudana Saraswati. kālaḥ kriyāśaktyupahitaḥ sarvasya saṃhartā parameśvaro 'smi — I am Time, the Supreme Lord endowed with the power of action, the destroyer of all. And ṛte 'pi tvā tvām arjunaṃ yoddhāraṃ vināpi — even if you, Arjuna, were not the warrior.
Shridhar Swami. He reads 11.32–11.34 together — kālo 'smīti tribhiḥ.
Madhvacharya. He gives several root meanings of the word "kala" — kala bandhane, kala jñāne, and also in the sense of cutting — to bind, to cut, to know; that is, Time = all the Lord's functions (binding the world, cutting bonds, knowing).
AI-assisted draft translation — under review.