चतुर्युगानां च सहस्रमप्सु
स्वपन्स्वयोदीरितया स्वशक्त्या ।
कालाख्ययासादितकर्मतन्त्रो
लोकानपीतान्ददृशे स्वदेहे ॥१२॥

catur-yugÄnÄá¹ ca sahasram apsu
svapan svayodÄ«ritayÄ sva-Å›aktyÄ
kÄlÄkhyayÄsÄdita-karma-tantro
lokÄn apÄ«tÄn dadṛśe sva-dehe

 catuḥ - four; yugÄnÄm - of the millenniums; ca - also; sahasram - one thousand; apsu - in the water; svapan - dreaming in sleep; svayÄ - with His internal potency; udÄ«ritayÄ - for further development; sva-Å›aktyÄ - by His own energy; kÄla-ÄkhyayÄ - by the name kÄla; ÄsÄdita - being so engaged; karma-tantraḥ - in the matter of fruitive activities; lokÄn - the total living entities; apÄ«tÄn - bluish; dadṛśe - saw it so; sva-dehe - in His own body.


Text

The Lord lay down for a thousand cycles of four yugas in His internal potency, and by His external energy He appeared to be sleeping within the water. When the living entities were coming out for further development of their fruitive activities, actuated by the energy called kÄla-Å›akti, He saw His transcendental body as bluish.

Purport

In the Viṣṇu PurÄṇa, kÄla-Å›akti is mentioned as avidyÄ. The symptom of the influence of the kÄla-Å›akti is that one has to work in the material world for fruitive results. The fruitive workers are described in Bhagavad-gÄ«tÄ as mÅ«á¸has, or foolish. Such foolish living entities are very enthusiastic to work for some temporary benefit within perpetual bondage. One thinks himself very clever throughout his life if he is able to leave behind him a great asset of wealth for his children, and to achieve this temporary benefit he takes the risk of all sinful activities, without knowledge that such activities will keep him perpetually bound by the shackles of material bondage. Due to this polluted mentality and due to material sins, the aggregate combination of living entities appeared to be bluish. Such an impetus of activity for fruitive result is made possible by the dictation of the external energy of the Lord, kÄla.