Srimad Bhagavatam — Ashtama Skandha, Shloka 2
Bali Mahārāja’s Empowerment and Conquest of Indra’s City
Prelude to Vāmana’s Petition
श्रीराजोवाच बले: पदत्रयं भूमे: कस्माद्धरिरयाचत । भूतेश्वर: कृपणवल्लब्धार्थोऽपि बबन्ध तम् ॥ १ ॥ एतद् वेदितुमिच्छामो महत्कौतूहलं हि न: । याच्ञेश्वरस्य पूर्णस्य बन्धनं चाप्यनागस: ॥ २ ॥
śrī-rājovāca baleḥ pada-trayaṁ bhūmeḥ kasmād dharir ayācata bhūteśvaraḥ kṛpaṇa-val labdhārtho ’pi babandha tam
Mahārāja Parīkṣit inquired: The Supreme Personality of Godhead is the proprietor of everything. Why did He beg three paces of land from Bali Mahārāja like a poor man, and when He got the gift for which He had begged, why did He nonetheless arrest Bali Mahārāja? I am very much anxious to know the mystery of these contradictions.
FAQs
Parīkṣit highlights the mystery: the all-sufficient Lord asked for a small gift, indicating a divine līlā meant to reveal deeper dharma and the nature of surrender through Bali’s charity.
This verse frames the doubt: although the Lord obtained His request, Bali was still bound—setting up the explanation that the binding is part of the Lord’s divine arrangement, not ordinary punishment.
Even spiritually puzzling events can be purposeful; the shloka teaches a seeker to inquire sincerely into God’s ways and to see tests and reversals as opportunities for deeper faith and integrity.