Srimad Bhagavatam — Panchama Skandha, Shloka 24
Bhū-maṇḍala as a Lotus: Jambūdvīpa, Ilāvṛta, and the Meru System
Mountains, Rivers, Lakes, and Brahmapurī
एवं कुमुदनिरूढो य: शतवल्शो नाम वटस्तस्य स्कन्धेभ्यो नीचीना: पयोदधिमधुघृतगुडान्नाद्यम्बरशय्यासनाभरणादय: सर्व एव कामदुघा नदा: कुमुदाग्रात्पतन्तस्तमुत्तरेणेलावृतमुपयोजयन्ति ॥ २४ ॥
evaṁ kumuda-nirūḍho yaḥ śatavalśo nāma vaṭas tasya skandhebhyo nīcīnāḥ payo-dadhi-madhu-ghṛta-guḍānnādy-ambara-śayyāsanābharaṇādayaḥ sarva eva kāma-dughā nadāḥ kumudāgrāt patantas tam uttareṇelāvṛtam upayojayanti.
De même, sur le mont Kumuda se trouve un grand banian nommé Śatavalśa, ainsi appelé parce qu’il possède cent branches principales. De ces branches descendent de nombreuses racines, d’où s’écoulent des rivières semblables à des vaches d’abondance, offrant lait, yaourt, miel, ghee, mélasse, grains, vêtements, lits, sièges, parures et tout ce que l’on désire. Ces flots tombent du sommet de Kumuda vers le nord d’Ilāvṛta-varṣa pour le bien de ses habitants; ainsi tous y vivent comblés et heureux.
The prosperity of humanity does not depend on a demoniac civilization that has no culture and no knowledge but has only gigantic skyscrapers and huge automobiles always rushing down the highways. The products of nature are sufficient. When there is a profuse supply of milk, yogurt, honey, food grains, ghee, molasses, dhotis, saris, bedding, sitting places and ornaments, the residents are actually opulent. When a profuse supply of water from the river inundates the land, all these things can be produced, and there will not be scarcity. This all depends, however, on the performance of sacrifice as described in the Vedic literature.
FAQs
In Canto 5, Chapter 16, the Bhāgavatam describes rivers flowing from the Śatavalśa banyan on Mount Kumuda that yield milk, honey, ghee, food, clothes, beds, ornaments, and more—symbolizing superabundant provision within the divine cosmic order.
Śukadeva Gosvāmī narrates this cosmological description to Mahārāja Parīkṣit as part of the account of Jambūdvīpa and its regions.
The verse encourages trust in the Supreme’s arrangement: real prosperity is sustained by divine order, so one should live gratefully, minimize greed, and use resources in dharma and devotion rather than in endless consumption.