Shloka 22
The Lord Appears to the Devas and Instructs the Truce; Mandara Is Brought for Churning
क्षिप्त्वा क्षीरोदधौ सर्वा वीरुत्तृणलतौषधी: । मन्थानं मन्दरं कृत्वा नेत्रं कृत्वा तु वासुकिम् ॥ २२ ॥ सहायेन मया देवा निर्मन्थध्वमतन्द्रिता: । क्लेशभाजो भविष्यन्ति दैत्या यूयं फलग्रहा: ॥ २३ ॥
kṣiptvā kṣīrodadhau sarvā vīrut-tṛṇa-latauṣadhīḥ manthānaṁ mandaraṁ kṛtvā netraṁ kṛtvā tu vāsukim
O devas, cast into the Ocean of Milk all kinds of vegetables, grasses, creepers, and medicinal herbs. Then make Mount Mandara the churning rod and Vāsuki the rope; with My help, churn the Ocean of Milk without negligence.
It appears that when different kinds of drugs, creepers, grass and vegetables are put into this milk and the milk is churned, as milk is churned for butter, the active principles of the vegetables and drugs mix with the milk, and the result is nectar.
FAQs
In Canto 8, the Bhagavatam describes how the Ocean of Milk was churned using Mandara Mountain as the churning rod and Vāsuki as the rope, after various herbs and plants were cast into the ocean to generate nectar and other treasures.
Mandara provided a massive, stable churning rod, while Vāsuki—powerful and long—served as the rope, enabling the devas and asuras to pull from opposite sides and churn the ocean.
The verse highlights purposeful effort using the right tools and cooperation—even among rivals—when pursuing a higher goal, while remembering that results ultimately depend on divine arrangement.