Srimad Bhagavatam — Dashama Skandha, Shloka 8

Garuḍa, Saubhari’s Curse, Kāliya’s Refuge, and Kṛṣṇa Saves Vraja from Forest Fire

Devanagari script

सुपर्णपक्षाभिहत: कालियोऽतीव विह्वल: । ह्रदं विवेश कालिन्द्यास्तदगम्यं दुरासदम् ॥ ८ ॥

Transliteration

suparṇa-pakṣābhihataḥ kāliyo ’tīva vihvalaḥ hradaṁ viveśa kālindyās tad-agamyaṁ durāsadam

Translation

Beaten by Garuḍa’s wing, Kāliya was extremely distraught, and thus he took shelter of a lake adjoining the river Yamunā. Garuḍa could not enter this lake. Indeed, he could not even approach it.

Synonyms

• suparṇa-pakṣa-abhihataḥ: struck by Garuḍa’s wing
• suparṇa-pakṣa-abhihataḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: suparṇa (प्रातिपदिक) + pakṣa (प्रातिपदिक) + abhihata (कृदन्त from abhi+√han)
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Prathamā (1st), Ekavacana; tatpuruṣa ‘struck by Suparṇa’s wing’; past participle (क्त)

• kāliyaḥ: Kāliya
• kāliyaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāliya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Prathamā (1st), Ekavacana

• atīva: exceedingly
• atīva: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atīva (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; intensifying adverb

• vihvalaḥ: bewildered / distressed
• vihvalaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vihvala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Prathamā (1st), Ekavacana

• hradam: the lake
• hradam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hrada (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṁliṅga, Dvitīyā (2nd), Ekavacana

• viveśa: entered
• viveśa: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi + viś (धातु)
• Form: Liṭ (Perfect/लिट्), Prathama-puruṣa (3rd), Ekavacana; parasmaipada

• kālindyāḥ: of the Kālinḍī (Yamunā)
• kālindyāḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kālindī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Strīliṅga, Ṣaṣṭhī (6th/षष्ठी), Ekavacana

• tat-agamyam: that unapproachable (lake)
• tat-agamyam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + agamya (कृदन्त from ā+√gam, with nañ-implicit sense ‘not to be gone to’)
• Form: Napumsaka, Dvitīyā (2nd), Ekavacana; tatpuruṣa used adjectivally to hradam: ‘that (place) unapproachable’

• durāsadam: hard to approach
• durāsadam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: dur (उपसर्ग/अव्यय) + āsada (प्रातिपदिक/कृदन्त from ā+√sad ‘to approach’)
• Form: Napumsaka, Dvitīyā (2nd), Ekavacana; adjective qualifying hradam

Characters & Entities

• Kāliya
• Garuḍa
• Kālindī (Yamunā)

FAQs

Why did Kāliya enter the Yamunā lake in Srimad Bhagavatam 10.17?

After being struck by Garuḍa’s wings, Kāliya fled into the Yamunā lake because it was considered difficult for others to approach, making it a temporary refuge.

Who is speaking this verse in Bhagavatam Canto 10 Chapter 17?

Śukadeva Gosvāmī is narrating this episode to King Parīkṣit.

What is the practical lesson from Kāliya seeking an ‘inaccessible’ refuge?

Worldly shelters may seem secure, but they are temporary; real safety comes from turning toward the Lord’s protection and purification rather than fleeing consequences.