Srimad Bhagavatam — Saptama Skandha, Shloka 16
Brahmā’s Boons, Hiraṇyakaśipu’s Cosmic Tyranny, and Prahlāda’s Transcendental Qualities
अकृष्टपच्या तस्यासीत् सप्तद्वीपवती मही । तथा कामदुघा गावो नानाश्चर्यपदं नभ: ॥ १६ ॥
akṛṣṭa-pacyā tasyāsīt sapta-dvīpavatī mahī tathā kāma-dughā gāvo nānāścarya-padaṁ nabhaḥ
As though in fear of Hiraṇyakaśipu, the earth of seven islands yielded grains without being plowed. Likewise the kāma-dughā cows, like Surabhi, poured forth abundant milk at will, and the sky itself was adorned with many wondrous and marvelous signs.
FAQs
This verse says that during Hiraṇyakaśipu’s rule the earth yielded harvests without cultivation—an extraordinary, unnatural prosperity accompanying his dominance.
He highlights how immense material opulence and strange cosmic phenomena can appear even under an asuric ruler, setting the stage for the deeper point that such prosperity is not the same as divine favor or devotion.
Material abundance and “miraculous” success can exist without spiritual virtue; therefore one should not measure righteousness or God’s pleasure merely by external prosperity.