Shloka 20
Nārāyaṇa’s Impartiality, Absorption in Kṛṣṇa, and the Jaya–Vijaya Descent
Prelude to Prahlāda’s History
कथं तस्मिन् भगवति दुरवग्राह्यधामनि । पश्यतां सर्वलोकानां लयमीयतुरञ्जसा ॥ २० ॥
kathaṁ tasmin bhagavati duravagrāhya-dhāmani paśyatāṁ sarva-lokānāṁ layam īyatur añjasā
ಎಲ್ಲ ಲೋಕಗಳೂ ನೋಡುತ್ತಿರುವಾಗ, ಪಡೆಯಲು ದುರ್ಗಮವಾದ ಧಾಮವಿರುವ ಭಗವಾನ್ ಕೃಷ್ಣನಲ್ಲಿ ಶಿಶುಪಾಲ ಮತ್ತು ದಂತವಕ್ರರು ಹೇಗೆ ಸುಲಭವಾಗಿ ಲೀನರಾದರು?
Śiśupāla and Dantavakra were formerly Jaya and Vijaya, the doorkeepers of Vaikuṇṭha. Merging into the body of Kṛṣṇa was not their final destination. For some time they remained merged, and later they received the liberations of sārūpya and sālokya, living on the same planet as the Lord in the same bodily form. The śāstras give evidence that if one blasphemes the Supreme Lord, his punishment is to remain in hellish life for many millions of years more than one suffers by killing many brāhmaṇas. Śiśupāla, however, instead of entering hellish life, immediately and very easily received sāyujya-mukti. That such a privilege had been offered to Śiśupāla was not merely a story. Everyone saw it happen; there was no scarcity of evidence. How did it happen? Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira was very much surprised.
FAQs
This verse highlights the wonder that merging into Bhagavān—whose reality is difficult to grasp—can occur swiftly, emphasizing the Lord’s supreme position and the extraordinary nature of such an attainment.
He underscores how extraordinary it is that the two could attain dissolution into the Lord so easily, even as all beings witnessed it—pointing to the Lord’s inconceivable potency and the exceptional circumstance being narrated.
It reminds us that the Supreme is beyond ordinary grasp; therefore, humility, sincere hearing, and devotion are essential rather than relying only on intellectual effort.