Srimad Bhagavatam — Chaturtha Skandha, Shloka 20

Dakṣa’s Sacrifice Restored: Śiva’s Mercy and Nārāyaṇa’s Appearance

Devanagari script

श्यामो हिरण्यरशनोऽर्ककिरीटजुष्टो नीलालकभ्रमरमण्डितकुण्डलास्य: । शङ्खाब्जचक्रशरचापगदासिचर्म- व्यग्रैर्हिरण्मयभुजैरिव कर्णिकार: ॥ २० ॥

Transliteration

śyāmo hiraṇya-raśano ’rka-kirīṭa-juṣṭo nīlālaka-bhramara-maṇḍita-kuṇḍalāsyaḥ śaṅkhābja-cakra-śara-cāpa-gadāsi-carma- vyagrair hiraṇmaya-bhujair iva karṇikāraḥ

Translation

His complexion was blackish, His garment yellow like gold, and His helmet as dazzling as the sun. His hair was bluish, the color of black bees, and His face was decorated with earrings. His eight hands held a conchshell, wheel, club, lotus flower, arrow, bow, shield and sword, and they were decorated with golden ornaments such as bangles and bracelets. His whole body resembled a blossoming tree beautifully decorated with various kinds of flowers.

Synonyms

• śyāmaḥ: dark-complexioned
• śyāmaḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śyāma (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṁliṅga (masc.), Prathamā vibhakti (Nom. 1st), Ekavacana (sg.)

• hiraṇya-raśanaḥ: having a golden belt
• hiraṇya-raśanaḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: hiraṇya (प्रातिपदिक) + raśana (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; ṣaṣṭhī-tatpuruṣa (genitive determinative): ‘golden-belted’

• arka-kirīṭa-juṣṭaḥ: adorned with a sun-like crown
• arka-kirīṭa-juṣṭaḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: arka (प्रातिपदिक) + kirīṭa (प्रातिपदिक) + √juṣ (धातु) + kta (क्त)
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; kta-participle (past passive participle) ‘juṣṭa’; tatpuruṣa: ‘adorned with a sun-like crown’

• nīla-alaka-bhramara-maṇḍita-kuṇḍala-āsyaḥ: whose face had earrings adorned with bee-like dark curls
• nīla-alaka-bhramara-maṇḍita-kuṇḍala-āsyaḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nīla (प्रातिपदिक) + alaka (प्रातिपदिक) + bhramara (प्रातिपदिक) + maṇḍita (प्रातिपदिक/कृदन्त) + kuṇḍala (प्रातिपदिक) + āsya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana; bahuvrīhi: ‘whose face (āsya) has earrings (kuṇḍala) adorned (maṇḍita) with bee-like (bhramara) dark curls (nīla-alaka)’

• śaṅkha-abja-cakra-śara-cāpa-gadā-asi-carma-vyagraiḥ: with (arms) engaged with conch, lotus, discus, arrow, bow, mace, sword and shield
• śaṅkha-abja-cakra-śara-cāpa-gadā-asi-carma-vyagraiḥ: Karaṇa (करण/Instrument)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śaṅkha (प्रातिपदिक) + abja (प्रातिपदिक) + cakra (प्रातिपदिक) + śara (प्रातिपदिक) + cāpa (प्रातिपदिक) + gadā (प्रातिपदिक) + asi (प्रातिपदिक) + carma (प्रातिपदिक) + vyagra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Tṛtīyā vibhakti (Instr. 3rd), Bahuvacana (pl.); bahuvrīhi: ‘with (arms) busy/engaged (vyagra) with conch, lotus, discus, arrow, bow, mace, sword, shield’

• hiraṇmaya-bhujaiḥ: with golden arms
• hiraṇmaya-bhujaiḥ: Karaṇa (करण/Instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hiraṇmaya (प्रातिपदिक) + bhuja (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Tṛtīyā, Bahuvacana; karmadhāraya: ‘golden arms’

• iva: as/like
• iva: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Comparative marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iva (अव्यय)
• Form: Upamā-avyaya (particle of comparison)

• karṇikāraḥ: a karṇikāra tree (golden-flowered tree)
• karṇikāraḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: karṇikāra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Prathamā, Ekavacana

Purport

The face of Lord Viṣṇu as described in this verse appears like a lotus flower with bees humming over it. All of the ornaments on the body of Lord Viṣṇu resemble molten gold of the reddish-gold color of the morning sunrise. The Lord appears, just as the morning sun rises, to protect the whole universal creation. His arms display different weapons, and His eight hands are compared to the eight petals of a lotus flower. All the weapons mentioned are for the protection of His devotees.

Characters & Entities

• Lord Viṣṇu (the Supreme Personality of Godhead)

FAQs

How is Lord Viṣṇu described in Srimad Bhagavatam 4.7.20?

This verse describes Viṣṇu as dark-hued, wearing a golden belt and sunlike crown, with blue-black hair and bee-like earrings, and with golden arms holding many divine weapons and symbols such as the conch, lotus, disc, bow, arrows, mace, sword, and shield.

Why does Śukadeva Gosvāmī describe Viṣṇu’s ornaments and weapons in the Dakṣa-yajña episode?

In the narrative of Dakṣa’s sacrifice, Viṣṇu’s arrival restores auspiciousness and order; Śukadeva’s detailed description emphasizes the Lord’s transcendental beauty and divine authority that pacifies conflict and sanctifies the yajña.

What is a practical bhakti takeaway from Bhagavatam 4.7.20?

Meditating on the Lord’s form (rūpa-dhyāna)—His beauty, ornaments, and divine symbols—nourishes devotion, steadies the mind, and helps a practitioner remember God amid disturbance and disagreement.